As the Impact continues its offseason preparations, here are some important dates in the next few weeks before training camp kicks off.
There will be a number of good occasions for the team to add some new players to its roster for 2015 as IMFC has the first pick in the Waiver Draft and the Re-Entry Draft, as well as the third overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft.
December 7, 2014 - MLS Cup Final
In the first leg of the Conference Championships, the New England Revolution heads back home to Boston with a 2-1 aggregate goal lead over the New York Red Bulls, while the LA Galaxy took their home leg 1-0 over Supporters Shield winners, the Seattle Sounders. Who will be part of the crucial game and what team will be hoisting the cup?
December 8, 2014 - Half-day trade window
Open 9 am ET - 1 pm ET. Teams may trade during that window or may re-sign their own players. Blackout period starts at 1 pm ET, runs through the MLS Expansion Draft.
December 10, 2014
Busy day for MLS teams as the MLS Expansion Draft, Waiver Draft and Trade window opens.
Expansion Draft
Orlando and NYCFC get to pick a total of 10 players from the existing clubs in the league. Since two teams are entering the league, Orlando and New York will take alternating picks, with Orlando choosing first based on a lottery held back in September. Existing teams can protect up to 11 players. Generation adidas and Homegrown players are automatically protected.
Waiver Draft
MLS Waiver Draft is done by conference call and allows teams to draft players who are currently out of contract, or are ineligible for the Re-Entry Draft. It goes in reverse order of the 2014 MLS standings, so the Montreal Impact will have the first overall selection.
Trade window re-opens until December 17 at 11am.
December 12, 2014 - MLS Re-Entry Draft (stage one)
Teams select players who are out-of-contract or have had their options declined by their current teams. The Impact will also get the first pick of in this draft, in which important players have changed addresses over the years. Last season, D.C. United re-tooled its lineup by adding defenders Sean Franklin and Bobby Boswell.
December 18, 2014 - MLS Re-Entry Draft (stage two)
D.C. United, the top Eastern Conference team in 2014, added scoring punch in striker Fabian Espindola in Stage 2 last year. In this second phase, clubs may select from players that are under contract and those not under contract. If a player is not under contract, the drafting club will be required to make a genuine offer to the player within seven days. In the event that an agreement cannot be reached between the drafting club and an out-of-contract player, the drafting club will hold the right of first refusal for that player in MLS. Clubs may select their own players in the Stage 2 draft only after all other clubs have declined to select those players.
January 2-5, 2015 - MLS Caribbean Combine
This is an annual showcase of Caribbean football talent between the ages of 18-21, organized jointly by Major League Soccer and the Caribbean Football Union. The combine provides opportunities for Caribbean players to be observed by MLS scouts with the hopes of being invited to the MLS Combine, the invite-only showcase event held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, prior to the annual MLS SuperDraft.
January 9-13, 2015 - MLS Combine
It’s a four-day annual showcase, where potential MLS draft picks perform physical and mental tests in front of coaches, general managers and scouts, as well as play in friendlies, in preparation for the MLS SuperDraft.
January 15, 2015 - MLS SuperDraft
This will be the 16th annual MLS SuperDraft, where teams select some of the top University talent in the U.S. The two expansion teams New York City FC and Orlando City will draft first. As determined by a "Priority Draft" conducted on September 24, 2014, Orlando City will have the first overall selection and New York City will pick second.
The Montreal Impact will pick third due to its position in the 2014 standings. Non-playoff clubs receive the next picks in reverse order of season finish. Teams that made the MLS Cup Playoffs are then ordered by which round of the playoffs they are eliminated.
