Hurricanes' Deadline Question | Trade for a 2C or Roll With Stankoven?

The switch flipped. Carolina’s playing fast, disciplined hockey again, and it starts in the crease with Brandon Bussi’s calm poise turning thin shot diets into statement wins. We break down how a goalie built for high-danger bursts steadies the bench and lets the skaters push, then zoom out to the quiet force multiplier: Jacob Slavin. With Slavin back, shot attempts against crater, lanes vanish, and everyone slides into the right minutes. That’s freed up Jalen Chatfield to smother rushes and given Alexander Nikishin the space to grow—unleashing a point shot that changes power-play geometry and a smarter, faster defensive game each week.

Up front, Andrei Svechnikov’s power-forward groove meshes perfectly with Sebastian Aho’s playmaking. Jarvis hunts pucks, Aho threads seams, and Svech finds soft ice to hammer pucks home. We also look at how Nikolaj Ehlers injects pace into the Stall “dads” line, turning heavy shifts into quick-strike chances. But there’s a real question at center: can Logan Stankoven handle the defensive burden in playoff minutes, or does a contender need a true 2C who drives the middle, takes tough draws, and protects leads? We weigh names, costs, and fit, including contract realities, no-trade hurdles, and why a right-shot faceoff option could be the cleanest fix.

Special teams may decide everything. The penalty kill stabilizes with Slavin’s angles and Bussi’s reads, while the power play finally found movement, volume, and variety. Since early December, Carolina’s PP has rocketed near the top of the league, with Ehlers and Aho manipulating coverage and Nikishin’s bomb forcing honest penalty kills. Add a prudent depth-goalie insurance move and the blue line’s healthy rotations, and this roster looks built for a deep spring. If management lands a center who tilts the ice, the ceiling climbs again.

Highlights:

• Recent winning run and how the style returned
• Brandon Bussi’s calm reads, rebound control, one-goal games
• Henrik Lundqvist’s endorsement and contract expectations
• Frederik Andersen’s role and the long-lull challenge
• Jacob Slavin’s shot and chance suppression impact
• Alexander Nikishin’s cannon, defensive growth, and PP fit
• Defensive pairs once Gostisbehere returns
• Aho–Svechnikov chemistry with Jarvis’ retrieval work
• Ehlers’ speed boost on the Stall line
• Questions around Stankoven at 2C and line durability
• Penalty kill trends with Slavin back
• Power play movement, shot volume, and confidence spike
• The Rumor Mill: 2C options, winger ideas, cap and assets
• Depth goalie insurance and blue line depth
• Seven-game outlook before the Olympic break

Enjoy the breakdown, the data-driven insights, and the candid rumor mill. If this episode hit the spot, subscribe, share it with a fellow Canes fan, and leave a rating with your bold deadline prediction—we’ll feature our favorites next time.

#canes #hockey #erictulsky #raiseup #stormtracker23 #rodbrindamour #lockedonhurricanes #Canescast #thestormsurge #AlexanderNikishin #carolinahurricanes #JaccobSlavin #causechaos #sebastianaho #andreisvechnikov #nikolajehlers

Chapters

• 0:00 Hot Streak And Big Picture
• 2:31 Brandon Bussi Emerges In Net
• 8:51 Lundqvist’s Praise And Contract Talk
• 12:31 Andersen’s Role And Goalie Dynamics
• 16:01 Slavin’s Return Transforms Defense
• 22:01 Nikishin’s Shot And Rapid Development
• 28:01 Pairings When Gostisbehere Returns
• 30:31 Svechnikov–Aho Chemistry Up Front
• 36:01 Ehlers With The “Dads” Line
• 39:31 Second Line Concerns And 2C Debate
• 45:31 Special Teams: PK Stabilizes, PP Explodes
• 51:31 Rumor Mill And Trade Targets
• 57:31 Depth Goalie Insurance And Blue Line Depth
• 1:01:01 Seven-Game Outlook And Closing

Transcript

SPEAKER_04: 0:31

Well, the Carolina Hurricanes are playing outstanding hockey of late, winning five of their last seven games and losing just one game in regulation. The Canes have looked dominant at times and are back to playing Hurricanes hockey again. Superior goaltending, a mostly healthy defensive core, and a pair of hat tricks in back-to-back games are all part of the story. The confidence of this Canes group has visibly improved as their successes have grown. What have been the keys to that success? And what, if any areas, can the Kanes still improve at the deadline? Join me as always for Hockey Savants, Darren and Katie. Ladies, this is gonna be fun.

SPEAKER_01: 1:17

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_04: 1:18

No doubt. Okay, so uh, since the last time the Kanes had had some challenges going into our last podcast. Uh they had uh through away a number of leads as we recall. And we're just kind of wondering, how are they gonna kind of get going forward in the way we wanted them to be playing Hurricanes hockey as Rob Brindamore would like it? And that's changed. And boy, has it ever changed, and last weekend they were just unbelievable. And they now sit first overall in the east, and in the Metro, they're seven points ahead of number two Islanders. So, sitting in good shape. One of the areas that has really been a story, of course, has been goaltending. Katie.

SPEAKER_01: 2:05

Well, there's no bigger story on the Carolina hurricanes right now than the uh emergence of Brandon Bussey, who was insurance to the insurance at the beginning of the season, with claiming him off of waivers in case Primo, who was supposed to be the insurance, was claimed. And once he was claimed, he ended up on the canes. And then once Kochekov went down with injury, not only was he spot starting, he became the main starter and has had a great amount of success. And it's been such a fun story to follow. I I admit that he absolutely took me by surprise. I was uh as of a couple of months ago, I was saying, you know, well, January 1st will come around and go check Alvin Anderson will be back to doing their thing, and they can sign him to a contract that makes other teams not want to claim him and send him down to Chicago. And we definitely do not want him in Chicago, and he's definitely not gonna pass through waivers, even if that were a possibility. Well, that's for sure. I am I am here for it. Busy has been performing amazingly for the Canes, and it's to the point now where when a lot of people question, is this just a phase? You know, is he having a few good games? Is he gonna come back down to Earth? And the answer seems to be no. And the reason that that's been proven is because he he had that game, he struggled against the Canadians. Um the Canes as a team struggled against the Canadians and but he bounced back. He didn't let that set a trend for him. It didn't, he didn't let it get into his head. And um he came, he's come back with two really strong games since then. He's only given up, he only gave up one goal against the Panthers, and he only gave up one goal against the Sabres, and has had some phenomenal saves in the meantime. I mean, the the game against the Sabres is probably the best one of the season for him, and that's even over the shutout that he had earlier. So it's been great. And the stats, if you look in the stats, he is doing really well. The um the save percentage isn't as high as a lot of other teams because as we know, the canes don't give up nearly as many shots on goal as the average team. And so when one goal does get by you, it does end up um hurting your save percentage a little bit more than if another goalie was to give up only one goal. But because he's consistently given up only one goal, um, I think 13 of his starts, or at least 13 of his wins, he has only given up two or fewer goals.

SPEAKER_03: 4:45

Wow.

SPEAKER_01: 4:46

That is phenomenal. That is over two-thirds of his wins, he has not just held the door closed or shut the door on hope for the other teams. I mean, he has really stood his ground and been super effective. So because of that, his goals against average is in the top five of the NHL.

SPEAKER_04: 5:08

Number two, actually, right now. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 5:10

And if we go and look at his hockey viz chart, you can see why he hasn't given up a lot of um a lot of goals, is because the area closest to his crease is blue, blue, blue, blue. And if you're if you're not familiar with these charts, blue means that shooters there have a bad shooting percentage against him in those areas. And so blue is exactly what we want to see for him, and it is blue across the board. He has a phenomenal save percentage when it comes to high danger chances against. And that's again more impressive because the canes don't allow allow a lot to get through, but a lot of what they are stopping are the low danger and mid-danger chances that teams tend to create that tend to give goalies that feel for the game. Yeah. And thus he's not seeing a lot of those low danger, mid-danger chances. But teams are good, they have good hockey players, and so those high danger chances do happen. And a lot of times for him, they happen after he's had an extended period of inactivity. And so his mental strength and focus that he has demonstrated in the crease has been phenomenal because it it is hard to have a lot of action happening in other places and then all of a sudden be put on the spot and having to make a high danger save. No better example for that than that one that he made on the two-on-o against the Sabres when there was the pass back and forth that Thompson shot and he was able to snag with his glove. I mean, just fantastic. So I am excited to see what else he has in store for the Kanes and if he can keep up this particular level of play. I don't see how the Hurricanes aren't the favorite coming out of the East when it comes to the playoffs.

SPEAKER_04: 7:02

Well, it's interesting because Alex Faust, who was the announcer for TNT, said he scored. Okay. And uh and so uh, you know, he he and then he goes, Well, he didn't score.

SPEAKER_01: 7:17

Mike Maniscago did the same thing. Everybody who was watching the TV did the exact same thing.

SPEAKER_04: 7:23

It was amazing. And and you know what, the that was probably one of the best goaltending performances all around that I I've seen. I mean, he made so many great saves because right after that, of course, he made that great save on uh on uh the defenseman with the Sabres as well, on uh, you know, their big dog guy. Um Dolen? Yeah, yeah, Erasmus Dolen, yeah, for sure. Uh so he made that great save on Dolen and several other times on on Tage Thompson. So Thompson, I'm sure, was uh in the night, was screaming with uh nightmares of many against uh Brandon Bussey. You know, Bussey, I mentioned he's number two in the league right now. He's got a 2.20 goals against average. He's the first goalie in history to win 18 games in 22 uh outings, which is ridiculous. Um and one of the things that was really fun on that broadcast, and I don't know, Aaron, if you saw that was uh was uh Henrik Leckquist. And what did Henrik say about this?

SPEAKER_00: 8:23

Yeah, he had a great quote. Um he said, I love everything about his game right now. I don't think this is a fluke. I think he's really setting a nice foundation for his NHL career. So coming from that source, you know, um people that are trying to brush this off as, oh, well, you know, he's gonna come back down to Earth. I mean, realistically, is he gonna come down a little? He's gonna have to because nobody maintains this uh this level forever. But just the ability to come back, like Katie said, if you do have a game that doesn't quite go your way, that's an incredible um skill and it's very necessary um for for goalies, especially the who play in front of the Carolina Hurricanes, you know. So um I think that's really great. And then um he's also I remember that Linquist said something about his calmness in net, and that that's something we have uh, you know, we have that with Freddie Anderson that you know that that's very uh very much how Freddie plays. And you know, I I do love how um Piotr Kachekov plays. I think we're we're gonna enjoy seeing him back next year when he's you know gotten healthy again. But um he does have more of what people jokingly call the goalie with a knife approach. So it's not the calm factor isn't quite there. But you know, having having uh all three of those guys in the system, and even though Kachekov won't be back for a while, it's pretty exciting for Keynes fans to look at this goaltending and say, for once they're gonna be going into the playoffs, and that's not gonna be the big question, you know.

SPEAKER_04: 9:44

Well, and it was fun that uh there was a history of uh Brandon Bussey and and Henrik Lundquist. Uh back in the day, we saw that uh as a child uh Brandon had met uh Henry Lundquist. Uh and as he said, he didn't say a word to him, but uh but it was interesting because it was kind of the table's turn because it seemed like Lundquist was pretty much in awe of Brandon Bussey, and he had many different things to say about his uh technique, the way he plays goal, the way he thinks, his uh his uh ability to get in front of the play and do a lot of things. And I think that's one of the things about Brandon, and you know, he paid his dues. Uh, you know, we we know he's a 27-year-old. He was outstanding in the American Hockey League, and we've talked about this before. He was uh one of the most highly rated goaltenders outside the NHL a year ago. So he's got a pedigree, he's ready to go. He's not gonna continue to win at this rate, like uh 80 or 90 percent of his games, whatever it is, but uh he's gonna keep winning. And the other thing that you mentioned, Katie, which I think is interesting, uh Freddie Anderson, and we'll talk about Freddie in a minute. Freddie played a tremendous game last game. Now, one of the things about that game is he saw some shots. And one of the areas that Freddie has struggled has been what we talked about so much, is where they go eight or nine or ten minutes, and we'll hear this in the game, there hasn't been a shot on the Keynes for 10 minutes or something, and that's hard on the goalie. And then there's this high danger chance, you know, somebody makes a gaff and there's a breakaway or something, and and the next thing you know it's in the net. And I thought, uh, you know, again, uh because they don't get these easy shots and they can't uh rack up a nice save percentage, uh, you know, the game's tougher for them. And it just seems that Brandon Bussey has a psyche that uh he can he seems to be able to play in that. And particularly uh as the game goes on, he seems to just get better and better. So great story there. One last thing on Bussey before we talk about Fred for a minute. Uh he's got a contract coming. He's a UFA right now, he's in a situation where you know he could move on if he wanted to. What do we think is gonna happen with uh with Brandon? Aaron?

SPEAKER_00: 11:57

Well, I'm I had asked the question on on uh Twitter, and it was interesting to see so many different responses. You know, there were numbers as low as you know a million and change uh for a couple of years, and there were people wanting to lock him up right now for five or six million, you know, for a number of years. I think that the Keynes Front Office, like it always does, will have a very good idea of what the price should be and where it should be set. And it's gonna come down to um, you know, probably what uh Busy and his agent think is realistic. But I think as far as the fit, it's clear that he loves being here. He can't stop talking about the the guys in the room and how great it's been to play with them. I don't think that there's gonna be any desire on his part not to work this out with the canes, even if they have to do some negotiating. But um, you know, I could see him, I I think you said, Tom, you know, around four million, I could see something like that. And then it's just a question of what's the term gonna be? You know, is it gonna be maybe it's not four, maybe it's three and a half because it's more years, you know. So so they'll they'll they'll work on that, they'll get all that sorted out. But I think it's gonna be a priority for the canes because, like Katie has pointed out many, many times, the way the canes play, it takes a special kind of goaltender to be able to handle long stretches of nothing and then a flurry of high danger shots. Since he's shown he can do that, they need to they need to lock him up as soon as they can.

SPEAKER_04: 13:19

Well, it's interesting because we've talked so much, and certainly last year in the offseason, we talked about the concerns with goaltending, and particularly uh, you know, Freddie, it's we felt this would be his last year in any case with the Kanes, and uh, and saying, hey, they've got to go get a goalie and a and a good goalie. Like, you know, we've gone through those discussions over and over again, and here they have them. They picked him up on waivers of all crazy things, and the next thing you know, they've got one of the better goaltenders in the league right now, the way he's playing. So quite a story. Uh, I'm a personal fan of big goaltenders. I love the fact we've got two large guys in goal right now with him and Fred. Uh, and I think that's great. And and so speaking of Freddie, I just mentioned I thought he played a great game the other night. What are we thinking about with Fred these days? Katie?

SPEAKER_01: 14:06

I think I'm still nervous. Um one good game does not mean that he has bounced back yet. Uh I definitely think that I personally and Keynes fans generally would like to see a consistent string of strong starts from him. Um, you know, games where, like Aaron mentioned, he does go through those eight, nine, ten-minute stretches without seeing a shot and is able to respond or have a strong response when the puck does come his way. Um that you know, I just need to need to have some consistency from him because unfortunately, the only consistency he's shown so far this uh season is that perhaps that age-related regression is finally catching up to him and he's just a split second too slow to really measure up to what the Kane style of play needs from their goalie. And that's not necessarily the worst news in the world. If that's the case, he can still be a very serviceable backup to Busy for the rest of the season and then go from there, hopefully, still be able to put in a strong performance for Team Denmark in the Olympics. Although we know that that probably means he's gonna be seeing plenty of shots while the game.

SPEAKER_04: 15:45

No, I totally agree. And and I think the key right now is that Freddie is the backup, which is kind of a good situation to have. We're not sitting there saying, hey, he's got to play every other game or whatever the case may be. Um, and of course, if Fred gets back to his game, and we know how well he played last year for the playoff run that the Canes had, he was outstanding for most of that. And I think uh he's a guy that uh if you've got him healthy and playing well, and you've got uh Brandon Bussey, all of a sudden the Canes goaltending right there with the best of them. So it's good stuff. And you know, one of the reasons I think Fred's gonna be feeling a lot better is uh as we talk about the decor, the return of Jacob Slatin. Uh I don't think there could be anything more monumental for the Kanes than bringing back uh Slavin. He's just been incredible. What are you thinking about on Slavin, Aaron?

SPEAKER_00: 16:38

Well, it's just wonderful to have him back, like you said. I mean, there's it it is such a different team with Jacob Slavin. And I think that that's kind of one of those areas where, you know, people who don't watch the Canes and don't know anything about Slavin, you know, um this has gotten better since the Four Nations last year when people watched him there. But um a lot of people don't realize just how elite he is at the kind of game that he plays. Because, you know, we were talking about this a little bit on uh Twitter today, you know, people tend to evaluate players based on point totals, even defensemen, which you should never evaluate a defenseman based on how many points he's putting up. That's not, you know, that's only that only applies to the those true offensive defensemen, and there aren't that many of them in the league, you know. But when it comes to a defensive defenseman like Jacob Slavin, looking at his point totals isn't going to tell you anything about him as a player. It's how he manages to shut down other teams' top lines again and again. His uh back checking, his stick work. I mean, it's just and he doesn't do it with a lot of, you know, he's not shoving people around out there. He can do that, but he doesn't have to. He's just smarter than you, you know, the he's ahead of the play, but with the hockey IQ, he's he knows where things are going when he can he can see a play unraveling before it even gets there. And, you know, he's always in the right place at the right time. So that kind of positioning and just everything that he does, all the little things he does. And I think that, you know, when you when the Keynes didn't have him, they were doing a valiant job trying to stay on top of that stuff themselves without him. The fact that they managed to continue a winning record without him was, you know, phenomenal given the number of people that were coming in and out. I mean, you had and you also had Miller injured for a while there, Chatfield was out for a while. I mean, we had everybody was out at one point.

SPEAKER_04: 18:24

The only one in the world.

SPEAKER_00: 18:25

And Goshis Bear is still out, so at least as the last game. So when you see Slavin come back in, then all of a sudden you realize they were having to try to make up for all of that. And they did their best. But when you have a star-level player, you know, uh really, you know, Slavin, Slavin belongs in star uh conversations, and he doesn't get in them nearly enough. So having him back has made a a huge difference to the key the team's success.

SPEAKER_04: 18:53

Well, and and one of the things we've seen, of course, is that uh they've been able to move players down in the pecking order, so to speak. And you know, one of the biggest challenges you have is you have a guy like uh Sean Walker, and and kudos to him for outstanding play, but playing 24, 25 minutes a night, it's insane. Um after last year, he was like 16, 17 minutes. So that's it, that's the kind of situation where now he's back on the second pair alongside uh Kay Andrew Miller playing the minutes that they should be playing and balancing out a little bit more. And uh and that was great. Now, Katie, when we look at Slavin statistically and take an analytical look at him, what kind of things do you see with Jacob?

SPEAKER_01: 19:35

Oh, it is amazing what he is able to do when on the ice. Um, I went ahead, I went back on a natural stat trick, and just for January, because just for his most recent return from injury, with the assumption that not only has he recovered from the second injury that he sustained, but it gave him more time to fully heal from the long-term injury he had from whatever he was dealing with over his own to the beginning of the year. So I'm I'm expecting that this this particular, what was it, five games he's been back so far is the true Jacob Slater. Um I did it by rate because there are a lot of defensemen that have played more games than he has, and so it would look more impressive um for them. So if you look at shot attempts against for 60, when he is on the ice, the canes only give up just over 25 shot attempts for 60 minutes. If you say Slavin plays 20 minutes per game and divide that by three, that means the other team is only trying to shoot the puck eight or nine times in a game when he's out there. Because a hit and a big reason for that, I mean the Kane system helps with that, but he is the one out there pickpocketing the other team, clogging up lanes, preventing them from even having the opportunity to do anything effective. You break it down even further. The actual shots on goal per 60 is 13 and a half. So half of those shot attempts don't even make it through to the goalie. And we know, of course, because of his stick placement, because of his blocks, he's very, very involved in that particular number. The expected goals against is one just over one. The scoring chances against is just under ten. And the high danger chances against is about four and a half. All of those stats with him on the ice is first in the league. There is not a single defenseman out there who has a bigger impact on his team's shot and goal suppression than Jacob Satan. Not one. He is the best in every single category.

SPEAKER_04: 21:58

I mean, I think you're right. And you can see it with the way the Canes are playing right now. I mean, he just changes all the rules for the Canes. Um, and you watch him on the ice, as you say, he just plays a calm game. He's just in control and he's on the blue. And and I think he's teamed nicely with Jalen Chatfield, and we'll talk about that in a minute. But I wanted to I wanted to talk about the fact that some of the players, as you mentioned earlier, had a chance to see extra minutes play in situations they may not have played in because uh because it was out. And that I think that turns out to be a great thing for the Keynes, because uh now you've got you know a group of folks who are you know they're getting healthy again, they're they're starting to really feel comfortable about uh what they're doing, and in particular, I wanted to mention Alexander Nikisha. Now, you know that uh I mean I just love Alex, I think he's incredible. Um he you know, tremendous right from the outset offensively. We saw him do things, he'd let that shot go 90 od miles an hour, like it was just incredible. And he, you know, he scores some goals like that, and you just go, wow, you know, this is we've wanted something like this for a long time, you know, and and uh he's just firing that thing. And and we saw the other night in that Sabres game, I think was one of his best defensive games we've seen. He was just he was just on point. And he got a breakaway. He did so many things that you just sat there and said, you know what? That's the Alexander Nikitian I was expecting. You know, and here he is. Um he just uh did so many cool things. Aaron, what did you see with with Alex?

SPEAKER_00: 23:32

Well, I think that like you, you know, you kind of covered a lot of it by by talking about the fact that he's getting all these opportunities because of the extra minutes he's had while some of the other players have been injured and out of the lineup. And in a way, you know, you wouldn't want that to be the situation for any team, but it is a very big silver lining for Nikitian because we know that um Rod Brindmore tends to bring new players, especially young new players, in rather slowly. There's a lot of caution. There's he doesn't tend to hand them the keys to the power play and all the rest of it right off the bat. It's not something, especially somebody coming from another country who doesn't speak English all that fluently. You know, this would this would be we if everybody had been healthy from the beginning, we would have seen Alexander Nikishan playing third pair minutes with probably no special teams time at all. And I think there would have been some disappointment from Keynes fans about both that usage and the fact that you're not getting to see the kind of development that you want to see in the player. So, in a way, um, the the situation has been that they've kind of been forced to accelerate his development. And because of his age, he's not a young rookie, because of his previous experience, he's thriving in it, in that, in those challenges. He's actually um, you know, there there was the the one game uh after one game when Brendan Moore said something along the lines of, you know, his his offensive work is good. We know we've done that all along, we just need him to take the next step defensively. And it was the very next game against the Buffalo Sabres where he put on that kind of defensive clinic. And I think that, you know, that's the kind of thing where if he knows, if he understands what they want from him and he and it's being communicated well, he's gonna do it because that he's the kind of player who can rise to those occasions and and can learn those things and take the time to do them right. So I don't think there's any problem there. And and uh I have to say that that shot on the power play, when I saw that um the other night when he got that power play goal, I had flashbacks to Shea Weber on the Carolina, I mean on the Muscle Canadians, because Weber had that slapshot, you know, not the same shot, but the slap shot that would be, you know, 100 miles an hour. And you know, the the the guys tasked with providing net front for that always had to kind of hope they weren't gonna get injured by friendly fire. But it it is that lethal. And I think that the uh the canes have never had somebody um I mean I think that we know the impact that Burns had when he was still able to get that shot off quickly enough um in the first year or so that he was with the canes. And it made a difference to the power play. So I really hope that Nikishan will be allowed to continue to take to get some of these opportunities and do these things because they need that.

SPEAKER_04: 26:12

Yeah, and and for sure. And and I think uh again, he's uh he's definitely got uh got the the mind too. Like when you watch him on the power play, he's very smart back there. He's uh he knows where everybody is, he sees the ice extremely well. And that's what's really impressed me about Alex. We knew he could shoot the puck, that was no question.

SPEAKER_03: 26:30

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_04: 26:30

And he's got one of the hardest shots in the league. And one of the things that we're seeing too is that folks are starting to defer to him. So they're trying to find a way to get him that puck in his wheelhouse because they know that if he shoots it and it's on net, it's either going in or there's going to be a rebound. So, you know, it's and you know, the it's all kind of working for them. And, you know, again, I I think there were some good things said about him the other night by uh by Rod Brindamore. You know, he said some positive things about he's starting to come along defensively, we're seeing it, we're feeling you know, there's encouragement here. And I think, again, a couple of things that are really working here is is you know, Alex is starting to feel really good about himself because he's hearing some good positive things being said. He's being put in situations whether it's killing penalties or on the power play where he's making a difference. And and of course, with Jacob Slavon back, you couldn't have a better mentor.

SPEAKER_01: 27:23

I I would say that the biggest thing that's the biggest adjustment that Nikitian has had to deal with is just the speed at which the NHL game has played. And we have seen that at certain times, that he gets caught out of position, or he uh isn't able to quite catch up with the play on the back check, or he he pinches in too far, stuff like that. And those types of mistakes are becoming fewer and farther between. They're not completely gone yet, and you're not gonna expect them. You know, it's hard to be a Jacob Slavin all the time, and we just need Alexander Nikishan to be Alexander Nikishan. I don't expect a lot of Slavin to start rubbing off on him. Yeah, and um, one of the things I have been impressed with is that Nikishan does seem to be hustling more when he had that breakaway. At first I was like, which penalty killer is that on the breakaway? And I was very pleasantly surprised to figure out that had been Nikishan flying up the ice. I did not know that dude had that foot speed in him. I thought he was a touch slow to be a hurricane and was gonna have to compensate, but it's starting to pick up and and his stick work, I've that's been one of the most impressive things on defense for me, is that he does seem to have that innate sense of how to use his stick, and there are a lot of times that he uh breaks up a dangerous opportunity for the other team just by really smart placement with his stick. So I think that uh he is starting to really feel the NHL speed of the game and it's starting to settle in, and that he is going to just uh keep getting better because now that Slavin's back, Slavin can take the most demanding matchups, which will give Nikishan just a little bit more uh opportunity to play against a slightly lesser competition, and so he can really hone those skills and take advantage of the other um players on the ice that he's matched up against and uh fast forward his development into a top, top D-man in this league.

SPEAKER_04: 29:25

Yeah, and you know I think he's teamed very nicely with Uel Nestrom. Um I I only have positive things to say about Uel. I think he's just done an incredible job. And I was delighted when they recalled him and brought him back in because I think he's he's a better fit with Alex on that third pairing with uh Ghost out. And uh, and I think uh he's done a real nice job. So again, um lots of good stuff there. Now it's gonna get interesting because when Gostaspair returns, uh, you know, how's this gonna play out? So do we expect there'll be changes? Who'll move with who? Uh, what do we think we're gonna see? Katie, any thoughts on that?

SPEAKER_01: 30:05

Well, I think with Slavin and Chatfield seeming to be pretty solid and Miller and Walker really starting to create some chemistry. We we know that Rod Rindermore, especially when it comes to his D pairs, is a creature of habit. And so if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

SPEAKER_03: 30:22

Right.

SPEAKER_01: 30:23

I I believe that Ghost will slide in with Niketian on that third pair, and perhaps that they'll get a little bit higher balance of the minutes than that um Nistrom Nikitian pairing is currently getting. Um, it also provides a D pair that he can put out in offensively advantageous situations. Um, gotta love the word advantageous, right? If you listen to the other day. Yeah. So plenty of advantageous situations offensively, because the thing is, it used to be that teams could cheat towards Ghost when he was in the offensive zone, knowing that he was going to be the main threat from the blue line. But if he and Nikitian uh are paired together, then they have to they have to play them uh honestly because it can either be ghost with his slick passing or his seeing eye shots, or it can be Nikitian with his raw power. Either one of them can be a difference maker in the offensive zone. And so I I think that's where um Brenda Moore's gonna go once Ghost is back, is he'll be he'll be with Nikitian.

SPEAKER_04: 31:30

Yeah, and they played well earlier in the year, so I think that's fine. And either one of them can play in the offside, so no problem. But yeah, it's very exciting. So, D Corps looking good. Um, I thought we'd move up and talk a bit about the forwards, and uh you can't start talking about the forward crew without talking about Andre Svechnikov. Oh my goodness, uh he's been on a tear. Um, and he had uh five goals in three games, so he just keeps doing it. Um playing extremely well and seems to have um just an incredible chemistry right now with Sebastian Aho. I think Aho assisted on every single one of those goals, and they were real nice setups. So something going on with those guys. Um, Aaron, you want to kick it off and talk a little bit about the forward crew? Thanks.

SPEAKER_00: 32:12

Well, I think if we're gonna start by talking a little bit about Andrey Svechnikov, we have to talk about um his how he's playing like a power forward, you know, and that is that is what they have needed him to do. Um, I think that it's been hard for him to do that uh in previous years because of all the the fluctuations and the flex, you know, the up and down the lines. You know, he's we've had uh times with uh Svechnikov paired with dad's line. We've had him on the second, you know. So I think that that putting him on the top line with Sebastianaho is a vote of confidence that says, we know you can be this guy. We saw you do it in the playoffs last year. We know you can be this guy. So you just that's all we want you to do is be this this player. And he's done a great job of doing that, you know. Um he's he's uh he had that the hat trick against the devils that was so much fun. But that that in itself is an example of the kind of thing that a power forward can do. They can take over games. And the canes have needed that. I think uh it wasn't that long ago that I was having a conversation with some people on Twitter when I said, you know, it's not you look at the canes and what are they missing? This was during their their uh slump there, you know. Um it's not so much a position, it's not so much that they're missing a specific player, but they need swagger. They need those guys who believe in their own talent enough to say, okay, we know the game plan and we know what we're doing. We're not gonna change those things, but but at this particular moment, somebody has to elevate, somebody has to step up and do something more.

unknown: 33:32

Yes.

SPEAKER_00: 33:33

Um, whether it's just being more aggressive about staying on those chances, trying to get those rebounds, parking in front of the net, whatever it is. And Svechnikov has been doing all of that, and it's paying off tremendously for him and also for Sebastian Aho, who has been free to do what he loves best, which is to be the setup man. Um, I think that when you want Aho to be the top scorer on that line in terms of goal scoring, you're not really going to see that as often these days. He doesn't seem to be doing that like he did when he was a younger player. But as long as he can feed the puck to Andre Svechnikov, and Svech is the one who can bury it, then that's a great duo, and they need to keep that duo together, I think.

SPEAKER_04: 34:10

Yeah, and Aho's only got nine assists in his last five games, so I think he's uh only nine. I think that's the thing.

SPEAKER_01: 34:19

The nice trend that's been happening though with Aho and Svech, and particularly Jarvis up there, is the fact that Spech hasn't had to be a big part of the four check. He's allowed to kind of sag back and get lost in the play. Let Aho and Jarvis go up and muck in the corners and dig the puck out, and let and then so many of the goals that he's scored recently has been the two of them leading into the zone and pushing the defense back. And he's gone in and found a soft spot in the defense in order for the puck to get to him and let him wire that hard shot that he has. And that has been a recipe for success that has um that has really created a lot of opportunities for that top line and um the ones that he's been able to cash in, even on the one that he had in Buffalo, where Aho was the one that that got it behind the net and skated it out, and he went back post and was able, because of his size and physicality, like Aaron was saying, playing like a power forward, was able to get his stick down and get position on the defenseman who was not a small defenseman by any stretch of the imagination and be able to tap that puck-in back door. So this this is fantastic because we know how well they played last year in the playoffs. And that was with very little time to build any kind of chemistry in the regular season with all of the mixing and matching and uh just fits and starts that they were playing with. If they're able to actually develop some chemistry and get some consistency together, hopefully, you know, as as Jarvis gets his feet under him a little bit more after having come back with injury as a trio and be playing well going into the playoffs and then find another level in the playoffs, it's really going to be a need filled for the Kanes as far as uh overcoming their their consistent exits in in the recent history of the playoffs for them. So I'm I'm thrilled with that, and I'm I know we're gonna be getting into it uh elsewhere, but um you know it worked even if Jarvey's not going, it works with Ealers there too. So as long as there's someone to give him the the space and the opportunity to be effective, I I just see this this starting to really roll and click for a while.

SPEAKER_04: 36:51

For sure. And and uh I think on NHL Network, they're talking with uh Seth Jarvis today, and he did say that they asked him, uh, do you think this is your year uh to win the cup? And he said, I think we've got the team. So he's definitely a believer that uh with this crew, and when he's playing his best, and I'm sure he will come back to top form, uh, you're gonna see something special there. And you know, you talked about we we talked about Nikolai Ehlers last time, and we were all kind of uh excited about the fact that Ehlers was up on that top line and was just flying, and it was great stuff. Uh and actually Svetch was on the right wing, which we love him on the right side, but uh he's continued on just fine on the left side, so that's okay. And now Ehlers has gone to play with the dads and with uh the two Jordans, uh Martin Nuke and Stahl. And you know, we kind of wondered, and there was a lot of discussion uh, you know, around saying some folks were saying this for a long time. I think uh Stasny, Paul Stasney had said, hey, he should probably be with those guys together, they'd be great together, whatever the case was. And I think we've seen that he's played extremely well, and the two Jordans can give him room out there. You know, they're playing heavy work in the offensive zone, and all of a sudden the the puck pops out, and there's Nikolai Eglers. And he's flying right now. They call him fly for the right reason. That guy is flying on the ice. And of course he had a hat trick the other night. Aaron, what are your thoughts on uh the dads with uh Nikolai Eglers?

SPEAKER_00: 38:13

Well, you know, me being the big mouth I am, I ran out to X when I saw those lines and was like, what? Ehlers on the deadline? So then I had to issue a correction. But but really, I mean, we were all thinking it, right? I mean, you know, why why would you, you know, it didn't make sense in my mind that they would do that because when I think of the stall line, I think of the line that's gonna get these heavy matchups, have to play defensively most of the time, and not really get, you know, even when they get opportunities in the offensive zone, it's more like let's hold on to the puck so that they that the other guys don't get it, not let's actually do something with it, you know. Um that's been one of the the frustrating things about the stall line is that they do have the puck a lot, but typically that doesn't amount to anything. So I mean they get, you know, they get their chances, but the chances are, you know, they're not exactly the most high danger chances in the world, and and they're not even the low danger ones don't always go because of just the fact that that's just how that line has been. So you put somebody like Ealers up there and you're thinking, well, his he's not gonna get the same quality of opportunity because they're gonna be doing so much defensive work, but that's not how it's worked out. You know, it doesn't take him long. They don't have to be holding the zone, they don't have to set up a four-check cycle that you know passes the puck around for the you know, a whole 30 seconds of a shift or something for for Ealers to get an opportunity. He's like you said, he's he's he's they call him fly for a reason. He's fast. And so it doesn't take one little puck battle along the wall, and and and that's all it takes to get him the puck and get it and get him a good quality chance, and that's what he's been capitalizing on. So again, against Florida, I think that the fact that the hat trick came against Florida was incredibly cathartic for the uh Keynes fans who have suffered through games in the Eastern Conference Final where they you know at the end of the day, when it's all over and they're back home and the the their playoffs are over, everyone says the line. They did everything but score. So we want them to score against Florida Panthers. We want them to score against all of the top teams as they're going through the playoffs. And the fact that you've got somebody who can do that is exciting. So let's see how that goes going forward. I know they were playing the Panthers and their AHL affiliates. I know they had too many injuries to count. I mean, uh Anton Lundell was their one C in that game, but it doesn't matter because it just Good.

SPEAKER_04: 40:34

Yeah, I mean, for me, uh anytime we can beat the Florida Panthers 9-1, I'm probably the happiest guy in the globe because uh that was just astounding. They just kept scoring and scoring and scoring. And actually, I ended up, I I watched the game mostly on replay. I think it was three to one at the end of the second, and I decided that I'd pick up the third period the next day. And I happened to see, by accident, I happened to see the score, and I thought, that can't be right. That's that's gotta be crazy, right? Nine to one. I like the game live, but uh anyway. Um so yeah, so good things happening with uh with the stall line, of course. The top line is great. Uh we've been seeing some good work with uh Logan Stankhoven and particularly his chemistry with Taylor Hall. But are we are we comfortable with Logan? I mean, he you know, is he gonna be the centerman that we want to go into the playoffs with carrying that uh, you know, that 2B line or whatever you want to call it? Uh and you know, are we are we convinced that Taylor Hall is going to continue to play at the outstanding uh rate that he's playing right now? Because we've seen him at different times. He he seems to uh uh kind of I guess lessen his performance level uh somewhat. Um what do we think about that line? And and do we feel comfortable that they're a line that Keynes can continue to go with and go into the playoffs with Katie? What are you thinking?

SPEAKER_01: 42:00

Uh short term? Sure. Short term, fine. Long term, ain't no way. Ain't no way. I I am not a thank Owen believer. Uh I think it's crazy that he has not been able to produce with higher-level players than Taylor Hall, but that somehow Taylor Hall is his lucky charm and able to make his that line more effective than it has been with just about any other configuration. But that that is not a second line or even a third line for a Stanley Cup contender, in my opinion. They have got to get another, what we've been calling it on Twitter, another 2C, even though we all know Stahl is the true 2C. But um for for the sake of consistency and dialogue, they need a 2C. And they probably, if they really, really want to be serious about contending for the Cup, they need another big strong winger.

SPEAKER_03: 42:56

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 42:57

For the Kanes to be in the best position possible, Taylor Hall needs to be their 13th forward.

SPEAKER_03: 43:04

Wow.

SPEAKER_01: 43:05

And hide in everybody else's house behind.

SPEAKER_03: 43:09

I have them, I have him on the fourth line. I don't have them sitting on the plane.

SPEAKER_01: 43:12

I would slight I would I would slot in Carrier and Robinson over him in a heartbeat on the fourth line.

SPEAKER_00: 43:23

In the sense that he's not a true fourth line guy, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 43:27

I just I I don't see it. I don't see him working, I don't see him working with with with and he's an absolute liability on that top line. He has had so many giveaways when he's played up um with Aho. And he's better. Like I said, I don't know what it is between him and Stenkoven. It does seem to work, but if you're going to improve for the playoffs, that line just too often, they will have great possession, they'll have lots of zone time, but then they will get muscled off the puck and the puck will go in the other direction. And so it looks like that line has been dominant because they've had it for a while in the offensive zone, but the actual quality chances that take place are for the other team. Just, you know, Blake and Stankhoven are great players, but they need bigger, stronger um bodies to guide and anchor that line. And Stankhoven at center is not it. And if Stenkhoven's moving to the wing, Taylor Hall does not need to be anywhere near that line.

SPEAKER_04: 44:30

Wow. Aaron, any uh rebuttal on that?

SPEAKER_00: 44:34

Well, I don't know that I'm gonna go full rebuttal. I I don't know. I think that the team really likes Taylor Hall, and I think they like how he's mentoring some of those younger players. So I think that they they don't necessarily want to push him out or make him feel like he's you know uh not a key part of the team. Um I understand where you're coming from with the 13-forward thing, like I was just saying, because yeah, if if you're building a fourth line for the playoffs and you want fourth line caliber players, you you want Robinson and Carrier on that fourth line because Hall is his is the way he sees the game is more like a top six player. It's not it's not a natural thing for him to turn around and be, oh, well, I need to play like you know, a grinder down here, you know. So it's it's it's gonna be harder for him to do that if he if they if that's where they end up. Um as far as uh the the question of Stan Coven at center is you know, I I think that his defensive play has been, his personal defensive play has been good, but it's a lot to ask him to carry the defensive play on a line. Um it's just a lot to expect for a young player and a player of his size, you know, to do that game after game. Um I don't know if either of you um follow a person named uh George Blankenship. I'm gonna give him a little shout-out here on Twitter. Um he's been doing these f these nice little recaps where he goes through uh some of the stats and data that Katie likes to talk about, you know, the the uh possession numbers, shots for, shots against, you know, that kind of thing. Um and and how each line has done in various games. And his most recent one, of course, was for the Buffalo Sabres game, and he pointed out that the second line actually had the worst numbers, and you could tell that because it was their presence on the ice that was causing that second period in particular to be um as much of a fluctuation as it was, you know, where the canes didn't look as good and were not, you know, doing as well. And a lot of that was stemming from their line uh getting, you know, having those seeming opportunities, like Katie said, and then in the puck goes the other way, you know. So defensively, as a line, they have to work, um, not just for one player. So there again, I think you're right about that, and they are probably gonna have to do something. I also had a little, just for fun, I ran a little poll because people were arguing about um if the Kanes were going to include a young player in a major blockbuster trade, hypothetically, you know, not that there is one coming, but if there was one coming, um, would it be Stancoven or would it be Blake? And it was surprising to me that the amount of discourse there was on that. So I put a poll up and I said, which player do you think is the better player? And astonishingly enough, the last I checked it, it was running nearly 80% in favor of Jackson Blake and only 20% in favor of Logan Stancoven. When you look at the contracts given to those two players, it's pretty clear the organization sees it the other way around. So I wonder how much of Stancoven's natural creativity and skill is being stifled by him being asked to play center because you wouldn't think that the perception would be that different. I thought it would be maybe 6040 or something like that. But no, right now, um, Keynes fans that have taken the time to respond to that very non-scientific poll are telling me that they think that Jackson Blake is the better player. So that's an interesting little snapshot of where the opinion is running right now. And I think it has a lot to do with Stancoven being asked to do all of this defensive work at center and and not drive the play. And I mean, when you when you think about it, um he's still on pace for something like 39 points, which again, the the biggest need they've had from a 2C is a 2C who can drive offense.

SPEAKER_04: 48:12

Yes. No, I I agree. And you know, I think uh I mean it's gonna be a tough discussion. The Canes are definitely gonna be interested to try to upgrade at center. I believe that strongly, and we'll talk about that a little bit later in the rumor mill discussion. I don't think there's any question they're gonna want to do that. The question is, will they be able to? And that's gonna be something we're gonna have to try to figure out. But in any case, uh right now that line's doing fine, they're doing very well. In fact, uh it was nice to see that uh Stankhoven had a little bit of a run. I think he scored in three straight games or four, it was whatever it was, it was great. And uh Taylor Hall's been effective. Uh certainly he's got 11 goals on the year, which to me is uh I didn't really expect that at the 50-game mark for uh Taylor Hall. So it's good. Um, so anyway, that's good stuff. Uh now we had an injury with uh Eric Robinson. Anyone know exactly what's going on with Eric right now? We wanted to shoulder shoulder, yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 49:12

Yeah, it's what it looked like. I mean, it he that's I wouldn't be surprised if it was uh yeah, uh if not dislo, probably not dislocated, but I don't know, strained, hyperextended, something like that.

SPEAKER_04: 49:27

Yeah. So he could be out for a little while. Shoulder injuries are sometimes a little bit tough, so we'll see how that goes. And he's he's had some injuries in the past, so uh he's a big guy. He sometimes plays a heavy game, but he can be a little bit brittle, as we've seen. So uh so we'll see. But they can put uh Kokaniami in. He'll fit in nicely on that fourth line right now until they decide what they're going to do. In any case. Um, okay, so let's talk a little bit about special teams because I think there's a story here for sure. Uh, but kicking it off, looking at the penalty kill, the canes uh sitting right now 16th in the league, 79.58%. That's not bad. That's you know, that's way down from where they normally are. I think last year they ended second overall in the league in penalty kill. Um, and you know, it's been a bit of a tough run. And of course, uh missing Jacob Slavin hasn't been good news. What are you thinking about the PK these days, Aaron?

SPEAKER_00: 50:21

Um, I think that you're right that it that it's starting to look better, but I think that that we go back to both the Slavin effect and the uh in the impact of Busy because those are the two things we've already kind of touched on. You know, both of those are huge factors in why the PK has gone from struggling a bit to starting to look like its old self. I still think there's work to be done to get it, you know, back to where we expect the canes to be on the PK. But um they're getting closer. So I mean, as long as things keep trending in this direction with Slavin back, um, then I don't think there's going to be any issues.

SPEAKER_04: 50:53

Yeah, I mean, it it certainly is a lot stronger. Again, uh, you've had different folks try to fill in on that uh PK unit. And now they've been going with uh Jalen Chatfield and of course uh Jacob Slavin as the number one defensive pair, and those guys are a great shutdown pair. And uh boy, the difference on the penalty kill is like night and day. So really excited about the potential there. But on the power play, what a story this has been. Uh, you know, the Kanes have now moved up to uh 13th or 12th in the league, 21.9 percent. Uh just incredible, incredible performance since December 5th. Uh they have just been incredible. They were sitting at 30th on December 5th at uh 13.7 percent. So we talked about that. I know we we talked about that very closely at some points. What are we going to do with this power play? And since then, they've had a 30.7 percent success rate and they're number two overall in the league. Only the oilers have been better since December 5th. And they've been just amazing. So they've been doing a sensational job. What are you thinking about the power play, Katie? Thoughts?

SPEAKER_01: 52:05

I'll love to refer back to my trusty hockey viz charts. And so if you go and look at the Canes uh chart, which shows shot volume, it doesn't show goals necessarily, but it shows shot volume. There's this big swath right in the middle that shows that the canes are putting a lot of pucks on net. They are being super, super aggressive in probably two-thirds of the area. There's one area off in the face-off circle that they need to find somebody who will shoot a little bit more from over there and help keep the PK honest. But it's great to see them just really being aggressive and sticking to their identity and really working hard because it's not been one source of the power play success. You've had um it's been mostly the power the first unit, but it's been fetch at times getting hot. A couple of aho Jarve's been pitching in recently, Gospespare before he went down was being super effective. And then once he got injured, Nikitian's come in and done a good job contributing. It's been across the board. Um, my one hesitation to say that it's fully back is I do feel like a few of the goals that they've had have been fluky or lucky, like that not a result of the process and more a you know, breakdown for the other team or a last minute kind of bounce that happened. So you kind of have to you have to take everything that they've been doing with a grain of salt. But for the most part, it has been looking a lot better and a lot more effective. And I would just be happy if they come to not necessarily a happy middle from where they started, where they are now, but you know, a good 25% clip from here go on out would be fantastic success on the power play to finish off the regular season.

SPEAKER_04: 54:01

Well, one of the things we've seen with um Shane Gosses Sparrow, of course, uh Alex Nikishan has had his chance, and he's been really, I think, very, very strong uh leading the power play. And one of the things that we've seen is we're starting to see more uh setups, uh, folks deferring back to Alex to get that big shot off. And and boy, it's really causing a lot of chaos. We love that uh causing chaos for the Keynes. So definitely good stuff. And one of the things that I think we've seen, which we talked about so much, uh a number of podcasts, has been movement on the power play. And they're really showing that. And one of the guys that I think is really making that happen is Nikolai Ehlers. And Ealers right now, he's sitting uh second in play in power play points on the canes. He's got 15, uh, Sebastian Aho has 16. So you can see that Ealers is really having an impact on the power play. And yeah, he's moving, Aho's moving, they're moving that puck around, uh, they're setting up good quality shots, and uh and I think the power play is the way that we hoped it would look uh when we talked about it so many times and saying they've got the horses, why don't they score? And we're definitely seeing it right now. So great stuff. Jarvis is back now, so he brings another dimension. He scored a nice goal the other night against the Sabres on power play as well. So good stuff. And interesting thing on that goal that he scored, which uh I'm sure you probably saw, was that the uh the individual that was causing havoc in front of the net was Alexander Nikishan. So it was kind of interesting. He's up in front of the net and uh getting in with the goalie and the defenseman, and uh, of course, in comes uh uh Seth Jarvis and he scores. So it's kind of fun to see that they're all getting involved and they're all feeling good about it, so it's good stuff. Um, interesting uh stats, if you look at the way that this power play has kind of evolved. You know, earlier in the season, we were choking ourselves because in October they were 9.7 percent. In November, they got up to 16.7. So we're thinking, oh, this is okay. Uh, but then it really started to hit. December 24.4, January so far, 36.4 percent. This is just unbelievable. Like you go up to those other hands and say, this can't be, right? Holy man. So it's uh it's the other thing about this, and we all know this, is confidence. Once they start getting confidence, anything's possible. So it's good stuff. Okay, so uh some encouragement on the PK. One of the best power plays in the National Hockey League right now, no question. So it's uh it's fun stuff on the special teams, and that's something also that Seth Jarvis talked about was the special team stuff. And you know, when you get into the playoffs, that's something that's so critical for the Canes because you know, in past playoffs, guess what's happened? Their power play dried up, and uh, and that was uh that was a major, major uh concern for them, and it caused them a lot of problems. And that's something that Jarvis was saying is if we can keep that power play going into the playoffs, it's gonna be a different story. So all good stuff. So it's time for the rumor mill, and we'd like to have some fun with this. And I know we've got some things to talk about based on what Katie said for sure. Um just wanted to mention that uh the Canes did make a trade recently. Uh they they uh sent a fifth round pick in 2027 for a fourth round pick this year, and a uh and took on a contract, Kyle Masters from San Jose. So it's an interesting bit of uh business by Eric Tolski, where he actually improves a draft position by taking a contract. That player is on long-term IR, so won't even see the delight of day with uh the Keynes organization. So kind of interesting and kind of cool stuff. And we're seeing some movement in the league finally, right? So Rasmus Anderson, the big deal, he heads to Vegas. You've got Keeper Sherwood, uh, a deal done uh yesterday to go to San Jose. So all of a sudden you've got some movement going on, and maybe we're gonna see some movement with the hurricanes. Any thoughts on that, Katie?

SPEAKER_01: 58:12

Well, it's interesting with this most recent move to see is this just getting a little extra draft capital or is it setting the table for something else, something bigger where Towski wants something a little bit more immediate to have in his back pocket as far as a trade chip of some sort in that draft pick. So who knows? We'll have to see. Um it will be interesting to see how the Canes move forward because they definitely are one of the contending teams that has the most cap space, if not the most cap space of any of the ones with uh cup aspirations or playoff aspirations. The most interesting thing about Sherwood moving is the fact that the Sharks see themselves as buyers, not sellers this season, which is um obviously a change from recent history. So it it's it's I think gonna start shaking a few things loose, especially since the uh two two of the most talked-about names have now been moved. And where the canes fit into all of that is Tolski gonna be aggressive and start jumping and moving forward. We are almost to the one-year anniversary of the Natchez and Drury for Rantnon trade. So we know that Tolski is not afraid to pull the trigger early and get business done in January or February, if the right trade is there. Or see if he decides to sit back and just let everything else kind of develop before he jumps in. And the picture's a little bit clearer. A lot of these, you know, Vegas went in and got Anderson. But what happens if other teams start to fall out of the playoff pictures and then somebody new becomes available? Maybe Vegas isn't able to be a player in that particular trade because they've already made their move. So we'll it'll be very interesting to see how Tulski approaches this. But the one thing I definitely do not see hand happening is him just staying pat with the team as it's currently constructed.

SPEAKER_04: 1:00:14

Right. Right. I I think you're right. Uh, you know, it's interesting you talk about Vegas, they do the home runs each year. And one thing they've done, which uh Eric Tulski is not prepared to do, is to uh sell off their future, basically. Uh they have I think they've got first round picks for three or four years. Probably gone now. It's insane, right? But they're they're a win now. That's their whole thing. And they've got a pretty young good team. And I think Anderson helps them in an area they needed help. Okay, so back to you know, kind of the situation you brought up, which I think is really the most important area right now for the Keynes, and that's that uh 2C or whatever you want to call it position that's uh Logan Stanko's position. And there are some candidates that folks have been talking about, and I think certainly at the top of the list, there's no question that it's uh Elias Peterson with Vancouver. Uh Pederson is available. There's no question that uh the Vancouver Canucks have decided they want to kind of turn over a new leaf. Uh they're gonna move these guys up. Peterson will go. I don't think there's any question about that. The question is, you know, is he gonna go to the Keynes or is he gonna go somewhere else? Uh Frank Sarabelli of Daily Faceoff thinks a deal will get done before the Olympics. Um David Peñata of uh the fourth period believes he's gonna go into the East. So it's gonna be an Eastern team that Vancouver does not want him in the Western Conference. So, okay, Patterson, a guy that uh, you know, he's having an off-year. He's got a monster deal, 11.6 million to 3132. Aaron, would you take Elias Petterson?

SPEAKER_00: 1:01:53

There's been a lot of interesting speculation about what the Connects might be willing to do if they did do decide to move Peterson. And would they one of the big uh factors that I think would definitely influence the Keynes decision if they decided to pursue Peterson is would the Canucks be willing to retain about 25%? You know, um and and and and maybe maybe you'd get an extra draft pickback if they did that, you know, in addition to whatever the package would look like. Um that would I think that would would certainly make the Keynes want to be aggressive in trying to get him. I don't know that they want to take on that whole contract because it is a lot of money for a player who right now, like you said, is not producing that well and who's had some slumps in in the recent years as well. Um the biggest question that a lot of people have is um Patterson has a full no-move clause and he has to waive in order to move. The reports from his his team, his agent, is that he's not going to do that. So I know that that's that's what they're saying now, and that can change if the right uh fit came along and they were willing to do that. But um moving during the season is always very complicated, and and it's just you know, he may so you'd simply want to play out the season. So if that if that's the case, then nobody's gonna um pick him up. And then the other question is if he waves, would he waive for Carolina? Are the Canes a team he'd be willing and interested to play for? So um, if he wants to play for a contender, I don't see why not. But um, I know that uh uh there are players in the league who have said on those anonymous player surveys that they would not play for Rod Brenda Morse. So you never know who those players are. We found out that Miko Rantnon was one of them after the fact, and I know they don't want to be in that situation again.

SPEAKER_04: 1:03:31

Well, one of the biggest differences, I think, with Peterson is his defensive acumen. Oh, absolutely. He likes the defensive game. He he's very much a player that uh I think would adapt nicely to the Kane style. So yeah, I think the bigger question is if you're gonna get a guy like Petterson, what do you have to give up? You know, and I know there have been lots of different uh ideas on what that that trade uh could look like. I believe it's a trade that would probably include uh Yasperi Kokanami. Vancouver's had interest in him, and I think it's gonna be a top prospect. You know, it's probably gonna be a Bradley Nadeau, a Charlie Serratto, you know, Justin Robodaugh. You can pick whoever you want. But it's gonna be one of those guys for sure. They're gonna want someone that can come in and start to play and make a difference, plus they're gonna want a first-round pick and some other stuff. So I think the King's.

SPEAKER_01: 1:04:22

How about local boy Logan Stankhoven?

SPEAKER_04: 1:04:26

Well, okay. That that's an interesting one, but you know, he's just signed a long-term deal. Do you want that kind of message to the hockey club that, hey, you sign an eight-year deal and you're gone? I mean, that's a question, right?

SPEAKER_01: 1:04:39

I don't know. I mean, long term for long term. I mean, you're taking term for term.

SPEAKER_04: 1:04:44

Okay, and and and that's and I don't think you're necessarily wrong. I mean, one thing that Eric Tulski has said right from day one is he'll he will make moves that improve the hockey club. You know, and he's done that. He's traded players. Look, last year he did it, without even uh uh batting an ice at Jack Drury, who we never thought was going to move in a trade like that, uh, and he was gone. So he's not he has no concern. He'll make a move if he thinks it's right, and if it's uh Logan Stankoven, it's Logan Stankoven.

SPEAKER_01: 1:05:11

But I think the case had the assets.

SPEAKER_03: 1:05:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 1:05:13

One thing to keep in mind is that Kokanyemi also has a 10-team no movement clause or no trade clause. And so if he if he doesn't want to go to Vancouver, and Vancouver very likely could be one of those teams on his list, then they have to have another player to go back. Stenkoven doesn't have the trade protection, and he's a local boy. So if you if you don't if you don't want to hurt Stenkoven's feelings, send him back to play in front of all of his hometown fret family and friends, and you know, maybe that helps to kind of you know heal hurt feelings or something along those lines. I'm not saying it's gonna happen. I'm just saying from a certain point of view, it makes sense.

SPEAKER_04: 1:05:55

It does make a lot of sense because it helps with the cap side, of course, and it's also a position-to-position replacement. So yes, I don't I don't think it's out of the question, and I've thought about Stan Coven previously in a deal like this. Now, if it's not a guy like Elias Petterson, you've got some other folks that are out there. Um, you know, you've got Vincent Trochak. Vinny, of course, was here, played quite well with the Canes. He's on a 5.6 mil deal till 28-29. Um, you know, he's 5'11, 190 pounds. He's not huge, but he's not tiny. Um, and he's a guy that uh is outstanding in the face-off dot in a right shot. So there is something that really, really appeals to the Hurricanes. You know, they're looking for some help with a right face-off guy, and I think he could bring that. So he's a guy that could be available. It's gonna cost you for sure. But, you know, they've done deals with the Rangers before, so you can't say never, never because they did the Kay Andre Miller deal. So that could be happening. The other one that we thought about is an interesting one is Charlie Coyle. Now, Charlie Coyle, a bit of a different player. Um now, Katie, you've seen Coyle with uh with uh the Colorado Avalanche. What do you think about Charlie Coyle as a possible guy?

SPEAKER_01: 1:07:06

Well, he definitely brings the size and the um and the presence, the physical presence. He's not he's not a bruiser by any stretch of the imagination, but he really does have kind of take up space more than just physically. He he's he's good. But I I guess recency bias for me is the fact that when it came to the playoffs, he pretty much disappeared for the abs and he was one of the I mean it was probably reason number like four that they weren't able to get out of game seven and that series against Dallas. There were a bunch of others, but it was one thing compounded on the other with him just not producing, and so it makes me a little hesitant, especially as far as the so-called 2C spot is concerned, because you know, when when the play gets tough and the ice seems to shrink and it gets just more intense and the expectations are higher. My one experience with him is that he shrinks from the moment and he didn't embrace it at all. So I it would be fine, but that that's as much as I'm gonna give it. It would be fine.

SPEAKER_04: 1:08:18

Well, and he's a UFA, so I think again, it would be a short-term fix. Uh but you know, I I think the canes are probably gonna look for something that uh somebody that has a little bit longer contracts, more runway, uh, because uh, you know, I think that's what they need. And hopefully uh Eric's Eric's working the phones on that. Now, one of the discussions we've had previously is that of course if the Canes can't solve center ice and have to go with the crew they have, one of the options is do they add a winger? Uh, you know, do they bring someone in that can uh make a difference on the wing? And they've got a lot of small players. Do they have someone that could possibly come in and uh bring a little bit of size and some offense? And I've talked about Jordan Cairo a number of times. I think he's a guy that the Keynes might be interested in. Uh another guy having an off-season, not playing particularly well, but here's someone that's had over 30 goals the last three seasons prior to this, and uh definitely is has improved his defensive game uh demonstrably. He was uh actually given some votes in the the Frank Selke Award last year, so that's for best defensive forward. So that tells me a lot about uh Kairu. He's on a good deal, he's 8 million and a bit till 3031. So these are players that we can think about. Um I believe that that Eric's gonna try to hit a home run. I think he's gonna try to get someone that we sit there and go, that's a real nice ad, not just uh, you know, fillers that they can, you know, fourth liners or whatever. Um I think he's gonna try to bring a player in that can make a demonstrable addition to the hockey club. And he's got everything he needs. Uh draft picks, he's got cap room, he's got uh prospects at the wazoo. I don't think he could be in a better position. So lots of excitement there. The D Corps is pretty well set with the uh with, of course, Nestrum available and of course Vallamacke, Yuso Vallamacke. He's been playing great down in Chicago, so he's ready to be uh available if they need a left shot guy. He's got NHL experience and has played well in the past in the NHL. So I think they're in pretty good shape there. And then they'll be looking for a goaltender. Aaron, thoughts?

SPEAKER_00: 1:10:24

Well, I think they're gonna be looking for the kind of guy that's, you know, a guy in net, you know, just a depth goaltender that is reliable, but not necessarily gonna be expected to do more than come in if if there are injuries. Because the the great thing about how things started this year is you had um um both uh Kachekov and Anderson, and then you brought in Busy to be sort of that third guy. And I mean we were all feeling like that was a great insurance policy. But then of course, uh with Piotr Kachekov needing surgery and being out in the sea the rest of the season, they're they've they have Freddie and Busy, and that's great. We love we've talked about them a lot at the beginning of this. We know why we love them, but they're one injury away from having to call up someone from Chicago. And right now, um, the goalies in Chicago don't inspire that kind of confidence to be somebody that you would call up in the middle of a tough playoff series. So I think they're gonna look for somebody. I don't know who that's gonna be because you know the it might be someone who's in the AHL right now, but just a little bit better caliber of goaltenders. So they'll find someone that they can acquire when that, you know, by the deadline if if they want to get an insurance policy. But I don't see them spending a lot of assets or capital on it.

SPEAKER_04: 1:11:30

I totally agree. And uh sure, there'll be some as teams follow out, of course, there'll be some goaltenders that'll be available. And and uh, you know, they had a gentleman that they might have signed, which is interesting, James Reimer, who uh ended up uh coming back and uh signing on with uh the senators. Um okay, so let's uh let's have some closing thoughts. Uh the canes have seven more games before the Olympic break. What are we thinking? How do we think they're gonna fare? Katie?

SPEAKER_01: 1:12:01

Well, honestly, looking at who they are going to be playing, there is no reason that the Canes shouldn't be able to win all seven. I'm being realistic. I think they should. Now, things happen, there's one back-to-back in there, you can have an off night, that sort of thing. So I would be satisfied with six and one, maybe even settle for five and two. But anything less than five and two against these teams when they're going against Chicago, Ottawa twice, the Rangers. I mean, even the best team they're playing, which is the Capitals, they're struggling as a team right now and just trying to claw their way into a playoff spot, let alone a strong position in the metro. So again, this isn't the recent stretch that they've been on against the Colorados and the Dallases and those types of teams, they've played really well against. If they bring that game against these other teams coming to town, they should be able to win. It might not be easy, but they should win. So I think they should go 7-0 in these games. But six and one, five or two, given the the things that come up in games from here and there, that would be fine. Anything less than five and two, though, not acceptable.

SPEAKER_03: 1:13:21

Karen?

unknown: 1:13:22

Karen?

SPEAKER_00: 1:13:23

I'm gonna lean on the side of six and one just because there's always a trap game. There's always one team. It'll be the team that they absolutely, positively, 100% should beat, and they will come out looking like they have forgotten how to play hockey and that they're gonna be. So there'll be, I think there'll be one of those, but I'm I would love to see a seven-game winning streak. We all would. That that's one of the things they haven't had this year is a really long winning streak. Um, and and that I think would restore some of our confidence because we have seen that in past seasons where they've gone on one of these, you know, six, seven, eight games in a row, kind of a winning streak, and and we we haven't seen that this season. So this is a good time to do it with these particular teams lined up.

SPEAKER_04: 1:14:06

Well, and and we're gonna be watching to see if uh the top line can continue its uh its terror, force the power play. Will it continue to be firing on all cylinders? And will the bull tending continue to be uh lights out uh as we've been seeing in recent games? Yeah, lots of things to follow here for sure. Uh the Canes will be playing hard. Uh these teams that they're playing, yes, uh many cases they're out of the playoffs, they're close to it. Some of them are fighting for their lives, and you know they're gonna come in and uh and they're gonna want to you know knock off the top uh the top team in the East right now. So it's gonna be fun. Uh and we're gonna be uh watching it, of course, very, very closely and getting ready for uh the Olympic break. Uh so we'll be back, I think, uh just about uh the end of this run. I think uh there might be a game or two following our next uh podcast together. So we'll have lots to talk about, I'm sure, as uh as things start to unwind, and maybe there'll be a deal done, or who knows what there'll be, but we'll certainly be on top of it. In any case, ladies, it's always uh great fun. And it was again as uh as we got into some uh spirited discussion today, and we'll look forward to uh to uh getting back together in a couple of weeks and uh and continuing these fun uh fun chats. Uh for those of you who've been watching or listening, of course, we're delighted you've spent time with us. Uh if you have uh comments or thoughts or questions, please leave those in the comments section below. Of course, if you like this episode, please press the like button. We're always happy when you do that. And if you want to be alerted of future episodes of Stormtracker, please press the subscribe and the bell button, and you'll be made aware just as soon as it's a bill. Again, we thank you so much for spending time with us and look forward to getting together with you real soon, right here on Stormtracker.