As the Orlando Pride join NWSL for 2016, they will go through an expansion draft in which they are able to pick players from the rosters of the other clubs in the league.
The basic rules are that non-playoff clubs like the Breakers may protect up to 10 players, of which up to two may be U.S. allocated players. You can read through the entire draft procedure here. All other allocated players will be left unprotected. Alyssa Naeher is Boston's only American allocation to protect.
After a flurry of trades, teams released their protected lists. Boston's is below:
Protected
Sinead Farrelly
Kassey Kallman
Julie King
Stephanie McCaffrey
Kristie Mewis
Alyssa Naeher (USA)
Mollie Pathman
Kathryn Schoepfer
Kyah Simon
McCall Zerboni
Unprotected
Andressa Alves da Silva
Amy Barczuk
Maddy Evans
Nkem Ezurike (CAN)
Jami-Ann Kranich
Lauren Lazo
Francielle Manuel Alberto
Morgan Marlborough
Bianca Sierra (MEX)
Stephanie Verdoia
Rachel Wood
Of note is the fact that Boston apparently still has the rights to Brazilian internationals Andressa and Francielle, originally signed to join the team for 2015 until they got called up to national team duty for the World Cup.
Orlando has already traded for Alex Morgan (Portland Thorns), Kaylyn Kyle (Portland Thorns) and Sarah Hagen (FC Kansas City) and will soon be joined by goalkeeper Ashlyn Harris (Washington Spirit), which helps guide their expansion draft decisions.
Looking at Boston's list of unprotected players, the biggest risks to lose are probably Amy Barczuk and Maddy Evans. Barczuk was an integral player for Boston in 2015 who played every game as their defensive mid. Evans was a versatile piece who moved around the field as needed and managed two goals despite shifting back and forth between the back line and the midfield.
Orlando head coach Tom Sermanni has just returned stateside from a gig as an assistant coach for Canada, so he may see some value in bringing along Nkem Ezurike, who at only 23 is still fairly young for a striker and may yet factor into Canada's plans for the future. Otherwise Sermanni has plenty to choose from other teams' unprotected lists, as well as having the college draft and international slots to fill.
Much of the Breakers' core from 2015 will remain intact for next season, including the offensive unit of Mewis, McCaffrey, and Simon and defensive rock Kassey Kallman.
Read the full list of every team's protected players here.