If you were away from hockey over the holiday weekend, my series that checked in on all 66 players either under contract or controlled via draft rights by the Hurricanes concluded with part 6 on Monday. You can find that article HERE and with it links to the five related articles.
For anyone poking around looking for Canes and Coffee coffee cups, please have just a little bit more patience. I had company in town for the holiday weekend and am scrambling to catch up on a few things on Monday night.
The most likely bet is that the Hurricanes are set personnel-wise to enter training camp.
But two things suggest that one should not consider that a 100 percent probability.
–First, there are still a couple unresolved situations from the front part of the offseason.
–Second, Canes GM Ron Francis has a knack for pulling off trades when no one expects them.
Unresolved situations
The hockey world entered the offseason with near certainty that one or both of Matt Duchene or Gabriel Landeskog would be dealt out of Colorado before the start of the 2017-18 season. Yet here we sit, coming out of Labor Day weekend, with both players still slated to wear Avs jerseys when training camp starts. Colorado General Manager Joe Sakic has painted himself into a nasty situation; it will be interesting to see if/how he is able to get out of it. I am on record way back when as saying that I think Francis could be a top bidder in a bidding war that does NOT include a top 4 defenseman. I still think Duchene is interesting if Sakic faces reality, cuts his losses to move on and takes a package of futures for Duchene. Even more interesting would be if Sakic held tight to wanting a top 4 defenseman and decided to up his ante to Nathan MacKinnon. The Avs’ situation could seemingly go a dozen different directions at this point, so a resolution involving the Hurricanes is low probability but not out of the question. I wrote about the Nathan MacKinnon dream in some detail all the way back on June 6.
The other slightly less tenuous situation is Alex Galchenyuk remaining in Montreal. He has been in and out of the doghouse regularly over the past couple of years and was expected to be some combination of salary cap casualty, trade bait or just cast off this summer, but somehow still remains in Montreal. With the Habs cutting salary elsewhere, it now seems feasible that Galchenyuk could stay, but the longer term trend over the past couple years has him slowly marching toward eventually playing somewhere else. Alex Galchenyuk was near the top of the list when I considered options to add a top 6 scoring forward in my article on June 16.
Either player would fit the playmaking center need for the Hurricanes and just maybe at a reasonable cost.
Ron Francis’ track record
Francis has a knack for pulling off deals that seem to fall out of thin air. The offices at 1400 Edwards Mill Road are air tight, so very little that he has done has found the rumor mills in advance of the deals. And Francis has also shown a propensity for doing deals timing-wise that surprise. The case and point for doing a surprise training camp eve deal is the Kris Versteeg/Joakim Nordstrom trade that happened on September 11, 2015.
I think Francis is sincere when he says that he has a team with which he is ready to enter training camp and even the regular season. But at the same time, I have to imagine that he is open to making one more move to try to put the team up and over the top and into the playoffs if a reasonable deal becomes possible.
The Las Vegas wild card
In addition to the situations outlined above, the Las Vegas wild card introduced this summer has not fully run its course.
Despite selling off a few defensemen over the summer, CapFriendly still shows 11 defensemen on the Las Vegas roster. That number is inflated by a couple with Deryk Engelland not certain to be part of the mix and a couple players who could go to the AHL. But there are still a few extras which makes the small collection of veterans in Jason Garrison, Luca Sbisa and Clayton Stoner likely available for a song to help reduce the roster and cut salary.
I recognize that I am in the minority with this opinion, but I am on record as thinking that the Hurricanes might consider one more depth addition on the blue line. Is there a deal that nets an experienced depth defenseman from Las Vegas? The cost would be virtually nothing, so it is more a matter of whether Francis would be willing to take another NHL contract and more significantly whether he thinks that the options available are an upgrade over the younger players that he has at his disposal. Shortly after the expansion draft on June 21, I perused Las Vegas’ roster and identified a couple potential defensemen who could be trade targets including Trevor van Riemsdyk whom the Hurricanes acquired but also Jason Garrison who is still in the desert.
What say you Hurricanes fans?
1) Are you just ready to end the offseason speculation and start work in earnest in training camp to build a playoff team for the 2017-18 season?
2) Given Francis’ history of surprise deals, what do you think the probability is that he does one more deal before the regular season starts?
3) Is there a deal you would do or a need you would consider addressing if the price was reasonable if you were in Ron Francis’ shoes?
Go Canes!
1) No and yes. I think there is still a week or two for speculation, but definitely ready for training camp.
2) 20%-25%.
3) The most interesting speculation recently has been out of Boston. If the Bruins are at an impasse with Pastnrak, that is a deal worth serious consideration. The rumor is that Pastnrak is seeking money close to Draisaitl due to the 70 points, but the organization is arguing that as a winger with 30 plus goals the comparable is more Arvidsson. My guess is the Bruins would want Hanifin plus a prospect. If Fleury and Bean both wow the staff in the prospect tourney, it would make losing Hanifin less risky. Because starting with Fleury and Dahlback on the left side is not a disaster as Dahlback was serviceable on the left last season–or the Las Vegas options could be in addition to this surprise blockbuster trade.
Im ready to kill the speculation and get to camp.
10%. Although I believe he should make a move of lesser note-worthiness. We have 49 contracts. We should move a couple of depth prospects for one other lower end prospect. About 10 contracts could fall off this year but we have a few draft prospects and next year’s draft top picks to sign.
If, and I stress if, Hanifin is moved for a top line forward, I would like to see a cheap LHD pickup from LV. I would bet GMRF doesn’t want to drive up Bean’s cost by playing him already. We would see 1 rookie defender on the roster.
1. Until this team makes the playoffs, there will always be speculation of roster tweaks. But yes, I’m ready for camp!
2. 70% likely. If we were to add a depth defenseman it would be after a larger trade as noted above some teams are against the wall (namely COL, VGN and BOS). Ct and gocanes pointed out the potential deals so I won’t rehash (but I agree). GMRF is in a better bargaining position as other teams get more desperate.
3. At this point Landy or Duchene may be able to be had for futures (I would preferably make this move). Pastrnak and MacKinnon are larger deals that would involve Hanifin (likely). Not sure I would make this move just yet or until we see how Fleury handles the NHL.
1. I’m ready to start work in earnest but also glad theres still potential for more improvement.
2. 20% and I don’t think that it’s all around Colorado. As noted by others, there are other teams that could be potential trade partners.
3. I don’t see Colorado trading anyone other than Duchene. It’s a top priority for them. I’d much rather us get Mckinnon but I just don’t see that happening. I’m open to us trading Hannafin for a 1st line center only if we have another trade lined up to bring in a defenseman that is not a rookie. I’m excited about both Fleury and Bean but the idea of having both on our roster as rookies this year makes me nervous. I would also think that the Duchene deal would only make sense if it were a trade and sign of some sort. I’d be reserved about giving up too much to get a player for only 2 seasons.
I’m ready to start the season and think the odds of a “blockbuster” deal are remote, even if COL has to move Duchene. (I’m not sure why Joe Sakic still has his job, but that’s another story.)
I’m not entirely on board with trading a Core-4 defenseman even if Fleury is ready because (i) Bean is NOT ready and would be rushed, and (ii) we are building this team from the backend out, and we should not sacrifice our stregth.
I’m firmly in the camp of those who think we do not have a scoring problem. We have a winning problem. Let’s not abandon our identify as a team unless and until we have to.
1. I just want the season to start. I miss hockey.
2. Would say odds are low. If there’s a deal it’s likely to add depth.
3. If MacKinnon can be obtained(very unlikely), I’d be willing to part with faulk and whatever futures it takes before I’d trade hanifin. I think we forget how lucky we were to get a player with such a high ceiling at number 5. He likely would have been a number 1 or 2 pick in a less stacked draft and it would be crazy to trade him before he matures further. This trade would also hinge on who we could get from LV to replace him.
Great discussion–obviously folks are ready for the season.
My original comment confused some. I was trying to answer the headline question and address Matt’s point about GMRF surprising on occasion.
If Bean wows at tourney, then organization needs to be ready for him in18-19. At that point there will be one too many LHD. If, and only if that happens and it is obvious that both Fleury and Bean are living up to their draft status would a surprise trade involving current D make sense.
Of course the solution might just be playing someone on their off side next year. That would be great. However if Boston reaches out this preseason it makes sense to listen before next year’s surplus arises.
A 30 goal 70 point RW is not available often. Probably not available this year. But the OP asked, so I played “what if.”
On the LHD thing…Both Bean and Slavin are comfortable on the right side. From what I understand, Slavin actually played more on the right than left in college.
While playing well trumps all else as a defenseman, having a couple players is significant. It creates some ability to play ‘best 6 available’ instead of being confined to top 3 on each side. This also comes in handy in the even of injuries.
Thanks Matt. That takes me back to a position I had when the Duchene talk started–don’t trade any of the D. When Bean joins the group and TVR becomes the 7th, the the Canes has the best blue line in the NHL.
I’m probably in the minority here, but I’d rather have Matt Duchene than McKinnon. McKinnon is younger, but I’ve some questions about his hockey IQ and his shooting prowess…I don’t think he’s a good center because of those two concerns. Damn fine winger, but not a center. Now, that being said, I still would not trade any of our top four for Duchene. His contract status makes it hard to swallow losing Hanifin or Faulk in a trade.
Given Sakic’s reluctance to go futures, I think the two most-likely surprises before camp that could involve us would be Pastrnak being dealt by Boston due to contract impasse or Zetterberg being moved by Detroit due to cap issues. Pastrnak is a better fit for the age of our team, but would cost more in terms of assets. Zetterberg is a better fit for need and would likely come at a cheaper futures price, but would only be around for a couple of years and likely at a declining production. I don’t see any other options unless Sakic folds his pride and comes down on his insistence that a top-4 defender be part of the package.
1. I tend to stay away from speculation and look at things a bit more analytically. So there is that. 🙂 But I am very keyed about the start of training camp this season – there is a real difference in the team this year as opposed to previous seasons, with several big names and changes made in the roster – Darling and Williams, in particular; as opposed to incremental changes (the aforementioned Versteeg/Nordstrom and even last season’s Bickell/Teuvo).
2. I actually think there is better than 50/50 he does somethingg before the start of the season, but it won’t be big.
3. As good as I think Bean will be, he will get one more season in Canada – last season was shortened by injury. With continuing development he is going to be a beast in 18/19. But I don’t see him as either a roster or trade factor this season.
And I don’t see Sakic standing too far down on his asks for Duchene or Landeskog. Those two are critical for Avs offense and he is looking to trade them to make the team better – and quickly so. He is not going to move his offensive firepower to take prospects and have the team be even worse next season.
That said, I read something interesting the other day that suggested both the Avs and Duchene are okay with him starting the season. He had a down-season last year – if he starts the season in Colorado back at his previous high level of play he is going to prove himself worth a lot more – and it will be a better outcome for both Duchene and the Avs. Regardless of what happens – preseason trade or early season trade, his price will be too high for the Canes to pay because of what Sakic needs in return.
I am sure you are, Matt, but I hope others are following #NHLCanes on Twitter. It’s Media Day and there are a lot of newsworthy items coming out of it, from Necas now “strongly leaning” as opposed to “will” go back to play in Finland to there will be a “C” this season, to be named after training camp.
Of course I’m not CONTENT…, how can we feel THAT optimistic, when there’s a few improvements that are needed?
At some point RF should (and probably will) make a couple moves, but I’m not sure how soon…? 30% chance before season starts…
My priority (should be obvious), is a BU goalie…and the reason is even more obvious…
Also need top forward, regardless of other moves.
1. YES!
2. 30%. But not even a psychic can predict GMRF’s moves.
3. I might be open to a Duchene or Pastrnak if the cost isn’t too expensive.