Kraken select McCann from Maple Leafs

The Seattle Kraken selected newly acquired Toronto Maple Leafs forward Jared McCann during Wednesday's expansion draft, the team announced.

The Leafs traded a seventh-round pick and prospect Filip Hallander to the Pittsburgh Penguins for McCann before teams had to solidify their protected lists on July 17. The move allowed the Leafs to prevent other roster pieces from being selected, Seravalli added.

Toronto opted to protect four forwards and four defensemen from Seattle. With four stars on the Leafs' offense, there wasn't much room for the team to protect its depth options, thus leaving both Alexander Kerfoot and McCann exposed.

The Leafs also didn't want to risk losing defenseman Justin Holl, who slots into Toronto's top four and carries an annual cap hit of just $2 million, according to TSN's Darren Dreger.

McCann is coming off a strong year for Pittsburgh, registering 32 points in 43 games.