6 dates to track on the Revolution’s offseason calendar

For the Revolution, a flurry of roster moves made last week—highlighted by the retention of forward Kei Kamara and the departure of DP Xavier Kouassi—kickstarted an offseason that will bring plenty of change to Foxobro.

Over the next five weeks, this rebuild will continue during several events on the MLS offseason calendar, including:

December 10

Half-day trade window

From 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM ET, the Revs will have a chance to sign and trade players with other MLS clubs. This period will mark the end of a three-month roster freeze that began in September.

Blackout period begins

At the end of the half-day trade window, all MLS clubs will enter a blackout period where they may not sign or trade their own draft-eligible players until the conclusion of the expansion draft on December 12.

December 12

Expansion Draft

At 2:00 PM ET, expansion side LAFC may select up to five players from the eligible MLS player pool. This pool excludes Generation adidas and off-budget Homegrown Players, as well as players existing clubs decide to protect. Each MLS team will reveal its list of up to 11 protected players on December 10. LAFC may not draft more than one eligible player from the Revs or any other MLS team.

Free agency begins

At the culmination of the expansion draft, a pool of MLS players will officially hit free agency. The list of eligible players—which will include goalkeeper Brad Knighton if the Revs don’t re-sign him—will consist of out-of-contract players who had their contract option declined, were at least 28 years old during the 2017 season, and have played at least eight MLS seasons. Teams will receive the official list of eligible players on December 10.

December 13

2017 MLS Waiver Draft

Players who have been waived by their MLS team, and do not meet the minimum years of service requirement for the re-entry draft or free agency, will enter the waiver draft. The draft order will be determined by the 2017 season finish—including postseason performance—with the LA Galaxy picking first, the eventual MLS Cup winner picking 22nd and LAFC picking 23rd.

December 15

2017 MLS Re-Entry Draft, stage 1

The re-entry process gives teams a chance to select experienced MLS players who want to stay in the league but have yet to re-sign with their current club. The full list of eligible players will be released on December 14. The following day at 3 p.m., the re-entry draft will proceed in the same order as the waiver draft.

In stage 1 of the draft, each team must exercise the contract option for, or extend a “Bona Fide Offer” to, any player it selects.

December 21

2017 MLS Re-Entry Draft, stage 2

On December 20, the list of stage 2 draft-eligible players will be announced. In this round, players who were not selected in the first stage will be available once again. Clubs that pick a player in stage 2 will have a chance negotiate a new contract with their selection.

January 19

2018 MLS SuperDraft

Hosted by the city of Philadelphia, next year’s draft will again feature an expansion side, LAFC, in the top spot. The Revs select 8th and 9th overall, but won’t pick again until pick 78, thanks to a handful of trades dating back to 2016.