Seattle Reign acquire international spot, draft pick in trade with Chicago

After beginning the NWSL offseason with a deal that brought Christine Nairn back to the team that drafted her, Seattle Reign FC announced a new trade on Friday — one that sent the rights to forward Summer Green to the Chicago Red Stars in exchange for a 2017 international roster spot and the 37th pick in the 2017 NWSL College Draft.

The Laura Harvey offseason is officially getting interesting.

Seattle now holds five international roster spots for the upcoming season, with just three of those positions filled by Naho Kawasumi, Rumi Utsugi, and Rachel Corsie. Jess Fishlock has a green card, and therefore doesn’t take up an international spot.

With Kim Little’s move to Arsenal, Harvey is almost certainly looking for impact players to fill the open spots. You officially have our permission to commence brainstorming your dream international picks.

Green was a steal as Seattle’s 30th overall pick in the 2016 NWSL Draft. Recovering from an ACL tear—which she suffered in the 2015 NCAA tournament—Green did not suit up for Seattle during the 2016 season. She showed a ton of talent in college and on the youth international level, however, including scoring 12 goals in 4 games in the CONCACAF U-17 Championship.

“Summer is a great prospect for the future and we felt that she deserved to go to a club that saw her having an impact on their team,” said head coach Laura Harvey. “She has worked tirelessly on her rehab and I wish her a very successful career.”

In a separate transaction, Reign waived goalkeeper Andi Tostanoski. She join the club in 2016 to serve as backup to Haley Kopmeyer during the Olympic break. After Hope Solo took the remainder of the season off she stayed on through the end of the season, making two appearances in net for Seattle.

The Colorado native came on for an injured Kopmeyer in the horrible game on that horribly tiny field against Western New York, then made her first professional start on July 16 in a 1-1 tie against the Flash at Memorial Stadium.

According to Harvey, Tostanoski was interested in playing overseas to get more experience. Unless Solo returns in 2017, waiving Tostanoski means that the Reign will be on the hunt for a solid backup keeper next year.

The team has plenty of roster spots to fill. Just 15 players are listed on Reign FC’s website right now (Solo does not appear on the roster), a number that could shrink even further. Both Merritt Mathias and Kiersten Dallstream are currently listed; while the pair have been extended offers by the Reign, they have not officially re-signed yet.

Seattle now has the 6th, 26th, and 37th picks in the 2017 NWSL draft, which boasts one of the strongest classes in NWSL’s brief history.