Thank you to everyone who has already supported my Kickstarter to launch Canes and Coffee. I am overwhelmed and appreciative of the support that this project has already received and thrilled that we are on track to be successful.
This said, post Cup Finals, before the draft weekend frenzy and in the normally slow 3rd week of the Kickstarter, I am asking all hockey fans (not just Canes fans) to lean forward just a little bit and make a small $3-5 contribution to support hockey coverage and passion. Hope is to keep meter moving and the Kickstarter on track before things get busy next week.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The headliner for next weekend’s NHL draft from a Canes perspective is the #5 pick overall and also the rest of the draft that follows. But this weekend is also the first chance to make trades to build out 2015-16 rosters. Multiple sources reported that Ron Francis was to talk with Eric Staal’s agent last week. As is becoming the norm with Ron Francis (and a mostly a good thing), minimal information has come forth since. My hunch, though far from certain, is that Eric Staal will eventually ink another deal to stay with the Canes and mostly assure a place in the rafters for his #12 somewhere down the road. And even if the recent talks suggest that Eric Staal might not fit long-term, this is not something that must be addressed this weekend. But I guess a blockbuster here is at least possible as are trades of other big contract players like Skinner, Ward and Semin. Next weekend is definitely a weekend to tune in to Canes news sources.
So aside from deals that might be made to restructure the Canes financials, what would Ron Francis be looking to add?
I see two top priorities:
1) First and foremost, sometime this summer the Canes must add at least one top 4 defenseman to fill the hole left when Andrej Sekera was traded.
2) Second (and I think a distant second), I think the Canes could use one more top half of the roster forward. There is at least a chance that this slot could be filled by the #5 draft pick, but more likely Ron Francis will look to add at least one forward, ideally at a discounted price.
How do I figure?
On defense, Faulk is clearly a top 4 defenseman. I think Ron Hainsey is can handle the minutes and the assignments as a 2nd pairing defenseman, but I think the key is to pair him with a partner who can bring a bit more in terms of generating offense. (That could possibly be Faulk on the top pairing depending on who the Canes add.) So much focus has been placed on the underperformance stat-wise of some key forwards, and its impact on the Canes 5v5 scoring woes. That is definitely part of the story, but I think the other less obvious contributor is the Canes inability to ice a 2nd pairing that can move the puck and aid the offense especially off the rush where players like EStaal, Semin and Skinner thrive. The Canes must get more offensively out of their 2nd pairing on defense, not so much measured in raw stats but more so ability to transition from defense to offense in a way that enables the forwards to attack. John-Michael Liles is the other player who could figure into the mix and possibly get thrust into it out of necessity. Liles brings a bit more offensively and has gradually grown more comfortable and improved as a Cane. With a budget unlikely to fit two top 4 blue line additions and it unlikely that any of the young players are ready for this role, I think Francis adds one true top 4 defenseman and maybe another 4/5 type player to provide more puzzle pieces to try to build out a decent top 4.
I think we could see either Hainsey/Faulk which was tried after the Sekera trade. I also think we could see a partner added for Justin Faulk and a combination of Hainsey, Liles and a veteran 4/5 (to be added) trying to hold down the 2nd pairing. Gleason/Liles actually proved solid and serviceable for a stretch in 2014-15 before Gleason was traded.
I will save the names for a part three that I hope to post on Thursday, but at a basic level I think the options to add a top 4 defenseman are more plentiful via trade than the free agent market.
At forward, I count Eric Staal, Jordan Staal, Jeff Skinner, Alexander Semin and Elias Lindholm as players who need to perform like top 6 forwards. On a deeper team, I think Rask slots as a great 3rd-line center, but depending on who the Canes add at forward, he could be pushed up to the 2nd-line slot. Yes. I realize that many of these players did not perform as top 6 forwards last season, but most of them must do so in 2015-16 for the Canes to have any kind of chance. In an ideal world, I like the idea of pushing Rask to the C3 slot and ideally adding a center (even better if he could be a wing or center) for the one big forward add.
So ideally I think the current Canes slot something like: EStaal/JStaal/Lindholm ____/_____/Semin Skinner/Rask/______
I think one of the two openings next to Semin would be the second priority for Ron Francis. And ideally Skinner should be in one of the two left slots in the top 6, but I just do not see it working until we see a different level of two-way play on a nightly basis. Even if Skinner rounds out his game, part of me still likes the idea of better balancing the scoring across three lines. One key could be finding a player like Nestrasil, Gerbe or Nash who can find chemistry on a 2nd line and fill an open slot without another mult-million dollar addition. I do NOT see the Canes adding three top 9 forwards, so one if not two of these slots should be open for competition from the youth and other players like Gerbe, Nash, Nestrasil, etc. fighting for bigger roles on higher lines.
Again, I will save names and specifics for another blog, but I think Ron Francis’ ability to add at least one player for a reasonable price who can step into the top 6 and be part of jumpstarting an underperforming bunch from 2014-15 will also be key to a Canes rebound in 2015-16.
In my next blog, I will take a shot at identifying trade options to add a top 4 defenseman before free agency even opens on July 1. Following that I will take a similar look at possibilities to add another forward.
What say you Canes fans? Are you expecting a blockbuster trade next weekend aimed at least partially at cutting budget? Could the Hurricanes exit the weekend minus Skinner, Ward, EStaal or Semin? If so, which one?
Twitter=@CarolinaMatt63
Go Canes!