Carolina's Cup Defense Starts Now | The Big Decisions Tulsky Has to Make

The Hurricanes finally end the wait and lift the Stanley Cup, then immediately step into the hardest part of being champs: staying there. We sit down with stormTRacker regulars, Erin Manning and Katie Bartlett, to sort through what Carolina’s “quiet” NHL offseason actually signals when GM Eric Tulsky is still working the phones, stacking options, and protecting a window to repeat.

We start by revisiting last year’s bold point projections and what they taught us about the Canes’ identity. Sebastian Aho doesn’t need a 100-point season to drive winning, and role players like Sean Walker can tilt outcomes when the structure is right. From there, we break down Carolina’s NHL Draft strategy, including the familiar trade-down approach, why turning four picks into seven is a feature of the plan, and why defense prospect William Hakansson drew real buzz as a potential value grab.

Then the big questions: what happens with Alexander Nikishin, and what does he need to see to commit long term? What does Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s future look like when center depth still matters and cap space isn’t the problem? We also talk Bradly Nadeau’s path to the lineup, realistic trade targets, and how Carolina uses offer sheets and even the threat of them as leverage in roster building.

If you enjoy smart, realistic Hurricanes talk with real roster context, subscribe, share this with a Canes fan, and leave a review. What’s the one move you’d make to give Carolina the best shot to defend the Cup?

Highlights:

• Why Aho’s value shows up even without a 90-plus point season
• Sean Walker’s unexpectedly strong production and Slavin’s rebound case
• How Tulsky turns limited draft capital into more swings
• Why William Hakansson drew “steal” buzz and what his style adds
• Tracking departures from the organization including Frederik Andersen’s move to Edmonton
• Why the John Carlson rights gamble made sense even without a signing
• What Carolina’s low-key signings say about running it back
• The Alexander Nikishin question: role, minutes, power play path, trade value
• The Kotkaniemi situation: center depth insurance versus moving his contract
• Bradly Nadeau lineup fit and how deployment can make or break a rookie
• The reality of big-name center rumors and why they don’t add up
• Offer sheets as leverage and why matching today can hurt tomorrow

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Transcript

Cup Win Glow & Next Questions

SPEAKER_01 0:32

Well, what an incredible season it was for the Carolina Hurricanes winning the Stanley Cup after a 20-year hiatus. But the celebration was short for Eric Tulsky and his staff as they jumped right into the draft, free agency, and trade season. If the Kanes want to continue as reigning champion, there's still work to be done, according to Kanes GM Eric Tulski. Did the Kanes pull off their usual magic in the draft? Which players have departed the Kanes and which players have been at it? What's the plan for Alexander Nikishan? And what's next for Yasbury Kokaniami? And will the Kanes jump into the restricted free agent pool with a surprise move? Joining me as always to break it all down are hockey salads here at Stormtracker, Aaron Manning, and Katie Barba. Ladies, what's going on? Hello? Hi there. Okay, so uh yeah, I mean, what's Eric gonna do? He's been a little bit quiet. We'll talk about what he has done so far, but you know, he's the wizard and he's always working on something. But before we get into that, I thought we'd have a little bit of fun. You know, last summer we decided to take a look at the roster and kind of give our idea what the point tolls would be for the players. And it's kind of fun because, as it turns out, we got a lot of them right. So good for us. That's great. Uh, a couple of things surprised us. Aaron, anything for you?

SPEAKER_04 2:15

Well, I think that we had all decided that, you know, the player who would end up in the 90 plus

Point Predictions & Surprise Seasons

SPEAKER_04 2:20

bracket, if anybody did, would be Sebastiana Aho. And it was because, you know, he got pretty close the last couple of seasons. He's been pushing above 80 and and uh really putting up more points on the board, both goals and assists. Um he's had a couple of seasons in his career where he's come very close to a 40 goal season. He's not done that yet, but we thought maybe this would be the year, and that would certainly drive forward the rest of his production. Um, unfortunately, um I believe Aho did he end with exactly 80. I think that was it. Um so he he fell a little short of our expectations in the grand scheme of things, especially with you know his name on the Stanley Cup, that doesn't matter a whole lot. Um but it just is I think it serves as a reminder that the Kanes don't have to have a superstar level scorer. They don't have to have a 100-point guy, they don't have to have someone who is going to produce at that level in order to be the team that they are, the champions. So that's just a reminder to all of us that, you know, when you look around to the league and you say, gosh, you know, this team's got guys that are putting up 90 and 100 points, you know. It a lot of it has to do with the character of the Kanes, how they play, and even just uh little things about how ice time is allotted in the bottom six because Rod Rendemore gives his bottom six more ice time than the average coach does. So all of that comes together to show that this is always a team effort and it's always a group effort. I think that there's some of us that believe that Ajo has that level of scoring in his game, but it isn't the biggest priority. It's it's playing that two-way game, that 200-foot game that allows the Kanes to do so much of what they do. So that was interesting that we we were kind of gung ho that he'd get to that 90-point level. I still think he's got a 90-point season in him sometime. Maybe it'll be this one.

SPEAKER_01 4:06

Well, you know, we talked about the the role he played in the playoffs, and and he again, he wasn't a big offensive contributor, but uh his ability with his line to shut down some of the top lines in the other teams was critical. So very very uh very, very smart on that one for sure. Um, Katie, anybody surprise you from that list?

SPEAKER_00 4:28

On the positive side, I was just revisiting the list and I saw that Sean Walker had 31 points, which technically puts him up in the tier above. And he is not somebody that we typically associate with being a point producer, but he had himself a very tidy, good little season. And you know me, I Sean Walker is one of my favorite Keynes, one of my favorite role players, and so I've always got to shout him out whenever I have the opportunity to do so. Um, so I love the fact that he exceeded expectations in that category, especially with all of the different uh roles he played in other facets um on the PK or whatever, and then how that that pairing with Miller really came about and became one of the Kane's uh feathers in their cap during the playoff run. Um on the not so great side, you know, I know there's a whole lot of caveats, but to another defender, I think we all kind of expected a little bit more from the points side from Jacob Slavin. Not that he's a Shane Goss despair where that is his role, but in the past he has produced, um, you know, even if it's mostly secondary assists, that sort of thing. And like I said, there's some caveats there. But he did play almost half the season and still was in single-digit points. And so I think that Slavin definitely expects more from himself, and that should rebound hopefully next season with a healthy season and um and in the different situations that he plays in. So um I think those were the two that stood out to me.

SPEAKER_01 6:03

Yeah, I mean, Sean Walker, as we heard in the playoffs, the the broadcasters were incredibly enamored with Sean. Uh he's kind of stepped up to be a a player that uh is getting a lot of notice now, and he, along with uh Kandry Miller, they were outstanding for the Keynes. Um yeah, I have to mention the Isperi Kokaniami. We had him at 45 to 59 points. Not quite for him. He ended up with nine. Oh man. Uh yeah, I think that's a big, big uh goose egg for us on that one.

SPEAKER_04 6:35

Well, if you'll remember, Tom, when we were talking about that last year, I said that he would get around 45 points if he was traded. And I still believe that he will end up in that 40 to 45 point center range if he is played and deployed like a third line center with third line center ice time and consistent line mates. It didn't happen this year. It's never happened with the Kanes. It's more than time to move on. So I look at that and say, you know, it's not something you you know, you can't look at the deployment that he got this year and say you would ever expect 45 points from somebody who had his deployment.

SPEAKER_01 7:07

So no, no, and that's fair, that's fair enough. And and I think uh, you know, there's again a lot of caveats. He only played 42 games, so you know, again, uh, but we had high we had certainly higher hopes than nine points for him, even if he remained the canes. So that that I think is a tough one for us. Uh and we'll talk about Kokiniami in a few minutes, of course, uh, as we look at some of the things that are gonna happen with the canes. You know, switching gears and starting to talk a little bit about what's happened so far. Uh obviously Eric Tulski and Darren York and the rest of the crew have been extremely busy with all that's gone on. And it kicked off in Buffalo with the draft. You remember, Aaron, you and I talked about this. We had a little bit of fun saying, I think this is gonna be a boring draft. We only have four picks. And of course, uh, you know, we wanted to sit back and I said, hey, what are we gonna do with 31, right? Are we gonna trade that, keep it, what do you expect? And what happened, Aaron?

Draft Day Deals & Value Hunting

SPEAKER_04 8:05

Well, of course they traded it. And uh that was kind of one of those things that um yeah, I think as most of us Keynes fans have learned, don't bother watching the draft on the first day unless there's a strong target like Bradley Madeau was. Uh that there's not going to be someone the Keynes are going to use that pick somewhere in the low 20s to high 30s to pick. You know, they're just not going to. Um it was amazing though that they parlayed those draft picks into as many as they did. Yes. They went from having four draft picks in t in the entire draft to having seven, and they selected six players. And we'll talk about what they did with that other one in a minute. But it's it's incredible that, you know, they they play that game because they absolutely do turn their draft capital into, you know, an advantage for them. Because as a lot of people know, the further down you get by the by about the middle of the second round, you're talking about players that have a very slight chance of ever touching heights in the NHL. You might as well maximize that chance with qual with quantity, not just be, you know, enamored of a player that you have to pick at at the at those lower left uh draft levels. That's something that Tolski does very well, and it's kind of fun to watch.

SPEAKER_01 9:15

Yeah, and and you know, this was a little bit of a different draft for us because uh there weren't any Russians selected. So that's kind of unusual for the Hurricanes. They usually are loading up on uh Russian prospects, and we didn't see any at all, uh, which is kind of interesting. Um again, I think uh, you know, it was what we expected. Uh they picked up some players that uh you know are a little bit under the radar, uh, some prospects that folks aren't necessarily thinking about. And and uh, of course, as you mentioned, they did parlay one of those draft picks, the 123, I think it was, which was in the sixth round for them, uh, was part of the deal for John Carlson. And we'll talk about Carlson in a minute. Katie, did you see anything at the draft that said, hey, wait a minute, this is this is interesting. Was there anything that caught your attention? No. No, no, it's fine. Maybe not. I'm not, it's not a loaded question.

SPEAKER_00 10:13

I did actually stay up, even though I was on vacation for the draft, just to see the Keynes turn that into two second round picks, being the most predictable thing. Look, the most interesting thing was that final, was that final pick, which you know, nothing ultimately came of the Carlson situation, but it does show that Tulski and his group have some uh let's call it unorthodox methods to have a approach trying to get talent and trying to acquire talent. Um you know, the the two goalies at the end, I think it seems like the past recent drafts, there's always been at least one, if not more goalies, so they're keeping the pipeline open. But it's just when you say interesting, it's just it seems like business as usual when it comes to the draft for the canes. It's their picks, they're they're they have their role, what they become come the future, I don't know, but it was just a very straightforward, predictable draft from the canes, and yeah, why not? Don't need they're Stanley Cup champions, they don't need to be doing anything crazy.

SPEAKER_01 11:20

No, exactly. And you know, I did watch day two, and I know that's probably surprising, but I did, and uh and they did draft uh at number 51, and this got a lot of attention from the folks uh in the broadcast, uh William Hawkinson. Um and this guy, he's a big player, he's 6'4, 207. And the thing about William, he he came in at 51. But you know, some of the folks that were you know fairly well known as far as the mock drafts had him quite a bit higher. Uh Sam Cosantino's FortsNet had him at 21, Jason Backl at 22. These guys were both on the broadcast. And of course, when he pops in at 51, they're saying, oh, this is a heck of a move for the Keynes. This guy's almost uh you know NHL ready. Uh and and Darren York said this. He said, William Hawkinson is a player we've known very well, playing in the international events and in Sweden, big rangy defenseman that skates well and has nastiness. We want our defenseman to be able to hold tight gaps and play fast defensively, and he fits that style of play perfectly. Yeah, I mean, they raved about this guy. Uh, and they said, hey, a steal for the Kanes. This guy has definitely NHL uh potential uh written all over him. So, you know, the Canes continue their trend to get these big hulking defensemen. Most of them are Russian right now, but here's uh here's a sweet dad to the mix, so it's kind of fun. So, yeah, not uh not a huge day, but I think I think Hawkinson has uh has some potential. The other guys, you know, not so much, but we'll see how it plays out. Sometimes these guys, uh, as we've seen with players like uh Uel Nestrom is a good example, you know, later in the draft and uh and come along and play some NHL for you. Okay, so let's talk a little bit about uh the winds of change in terms of player departures. Um you know, I as I start this off, uh, you know, I spent a lot of time covering the Chicago Wolves last year, and certainly at the end as we watched them in their run to the to the Calder Cup and uh trying to trying to finish that off for the for the Keynes organization. And there's some players that left now that I think uh it's it's you know it's kind of sad. They were great players. Uh Dominic

Departures From Raleigh & Chicago

SPEAKER_01 13:32

Pensori, I mean, I talked about Dom all the time, and I think he's a great player. Really enjoyed Dom. Ryan Suzuki, he was on Stormtracker. He was on a podcast with with uh Andrew and Aldi and I, and a great guy, and he's gone. Dom headed off to the Colorado organization. So over to you on that one, Katie. And and uh Ryan is headed to the Ottawa Senators Organization, is probably your mark for Bellville next year. So he'll be closer to his brother, which is great. Giovanni Smith has gone over to uh the KHL, the Shanghai. So we'll see how he does uh with that uh with that team. That's kind of fun. Uh Noah Philp was a tough loss as well for uh the Wolves. Philp was absolutely a beast in the playoffs, he was incredible. And I actually felt like he should get another shot in the NHL, if not with the canes somewhere. And he's gone uh headed over to uh uh uh uh Sweden to play over there with HB 71. So he's gone, and Noel Gundler is gone as well, and he's signed over there as well. So, you know, a lot of players heading from Chicago on the Keynes side, Freddie Anderson. Katie?

SPEAKER_00 14:41

Well, if you had asked me to make a prediction what was going to happen with Freddie Anderson this offseason, going to Edmonton absolutely would have been what I would have said. Because with with his with his availability issues, I didn't see him re-signing with the Kanes. A lot of people talked about the you know, just warm fuzzies of bringing him back and running three goaltenders again, but you just can't realistically do that. And I think they're the canes are confident enough that Kochekov is going to be 100% ready to go at the beginning of the season and they're ready to to run with Kochekov and Bussy. And so bringing back Anderson didn't make sense for the Kanes. And then which team has just always been in the news cycle of we need a goalie, we need a goalie, if only we had a goalie. That of course is the Oilers. So I'm not surprised he's there. I, you know, I hope that he does well with that defense in front of him. I'm worried it's going to be a bit of a tough ride up there in Edmonton, but you still have all the goal support that that offense is able to provide. So I wouldn't be surprised if the Oilers are winning, if it's a lot of four, three, five, four type wins. Um, but as long as he can do better than what they had before, I'm sure that the Oilers will be more than happy with that particular contribution. So we will miss Freddie. We loved our great Dane, uh, but all the best to him, except when playing the Canes of the Abs in the United States.

SPEAKER_01 16:14

Well, of course, uh he's due to get married this summer, so I'm sure a lot of the Keynes players will be at that wedding as well, so they'll get a chance to uh wish him well as well for uh with uh with the Oilers. Um now you mentioned John Carlson, uh Aaron. He was also one of the players that uh has departed a very short tenure uh in the Keynes organization. Um thoughts on the John Carlson situation all around, Aaron?

SPEAKER_04 16:42

I think um it was a really interesting play, like you said, for them to be creative, think outside the box, and use that, you know, very late draft pick that was probably not ever going to touch. I again very very rare for draft picks that late to make it. Um so why not? Why not use that to um get the signing rights to Carlson? As far as the player himself goes, it would have been an interesting addition for the Kanes. They I think they they still could use a right-handed defenseman somewhere you know down the line, and there aren't that many of them, and you know, they're they usually cost a premium. So why not? Take the gamble, see if he's available. But I wasn't sold on Carlson's fit with the Kanes anyway, so no loss.

SPEAKER_01 17:21

Yeah, that's exactly where I was. Uh I my feeling on Carlson is, and I watched a lot of his play with Anaheim, I watched all their games in the playoffs and so on. He's a fine defenseman, don't get me wrong, and he's gonna be a nice replacement for Radish, you know, who's uh you know who went end up going to Toronto. Uh he can go onto the power play and do that for Tampa, that's great. But you know, the kind of game the Kanes play, and it's demanding and it's fast and it's hard, is not his game. And so I, you know, yes, they would have uh Slavon would have tried to cover for him or whatever the case was, but I I'm not I'm not losing a lot of sleep because we didn't sign John Carlson. In any case, um, yeah, so those are the players gone. Um and you know, we expected Anderson. Carlson wasn't really part of the team. So so far, you know, there's really not much to change in terms of the Keynes lineup, and we actually didn't expect any because most of the Keynes are already signed on to long-term deals. So, you know, there wasn't gonna be a lot of movement. So the new arrivals and re-signings has been kind of uh, I guess it's been insignificant in some ways or underwhelming is probably the right word for it. Um, you you know, we had Nicholas Delorier who

Low Key Signings & Remaining Free Agents

SPEAKER_01 18:35

signed at the big event, and that was great, two years, and we all love Nicholas. That's wonderful. He's not gonna move the needle for us much. Uh Yusso Vallamacke was signed to another year, and uh, it's a one-way deal, which is interesting, and I think he may be earmarked for that number seven defense spot, and that would be great because he was outstanding uh was Chicago, and I think the big question with Vallamacke was really could he rebound from another serious injury? And he did that in spades, so I think he would be outstanding as that number seven guy, and that's great for him. Um couple of signings for Chicago. Uh Alexi Hemosalmi was announced today. He's been a defenseman with the Wolves, and sometimes they're number seven guys, so he gets to move up a little bit, I think, with the moves they're making. And Zach Sachenko, who's interesting, um look, he's an American Hockey League goaltender. He's not going to see the light of day with the hurricanes, but he's a good guy to back up in Chicago. He actually played with the Wolves uh three, four years ago, which is kind of fun. Uh, and also he had played in collegiate hockey in Alberta uh with Lethbridge when uh um actually uh Spirosa Nassis was coaching another, the University of Alberta team. So it was uh kind of fun that they probably knew each other from uh back in those days as well. So he's earmarked for uh Chicago. Really nothing for the K so far. Nope. Surprising.

SPEAKER_00 20:09

I think I'm kind of hoping that there might be something a little bit more interesting to go on just to have something to talk about, but I don't know that it would be I don't know that it would make it surprising. It's again, this is a Stanley Cup winning team. These players won the cup together, so you are not the the front office isn't gonna go just do a bunch of signings and trades just because it they've got to have a purpose, they've got to make the team demonstrably better. And so far that opportunity has not come up at the price point that the canes are comfortable with. So why why make a move if you don't have to?

SPEAKER_01 20:50

Yeah, and and and I I totally agree. And and I think uh, you know, when you looked at the free agent list, the UFA list, uh unrestricted guys, not really too impressive this year. So I didn't see them rushing out to get players, you know, at uh at noon on free agent day, the first. Um I thought they might sign a few players for Chicago simply because they've done this in the past, you know, maybe a veteran defenseman, maybe some other experience that could join the Wolves and help mentor the young players, but they haven't done that yet either. So if we look at the remaining unrestricted free agents, um Skyler Bridemore. Uh he's uh he's sitting out there, Josiah Slavin and Mike Riley. Any of those folks would you like to see return to the Canes, Aaron? Or to the Wolves, either one.

SPEAKER_04 21:39

Um well, you know, I think any of them uh I would say that I'm my my gut instinct is telling me that Mike Riley is probably going to be moving on. Um the the the um the typical pathway it seems like for a lot of the uh NHL front offices is that they have this big flurry right after the free agency. You've got these guys, these depth players that are that are still on the list.

SPEAKER_02 22:02

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 22:02

Um and you know, those guys, I typically to me, they get signed between mid-July and mid-August when the the they're really kind of filling out those rosters, looking for those depth players, those seventh defensemen and 13th forwards and so on. And and we haven't reached that stage yet. And I think what's interesting about that is I feel like that stage has been delayed just a little bit by the um, and I know we're gonna maybe touch on this a little bit later, but by the double offersheets that we had with uh Barrett Hayton being offer sheeted by the New Jersey Devils and by the Bigger one with Leo Carlson that then you know that you know and I know like I said we're gonna talk about this, but what happened because of those offershoots being signed is that I think teams were waiting to see what was gonna happen because it especially in the in the Carlson situation, whichever team ended up with Carlson, they're gonna have to move out some some players. They're not gonna be able to keep everybody they've got, and that means there might be somebody a little bit more intriguing to add to your roster than the people that are on the the UFA list on Puckpedia. So I do think that all of these guys are gonna find a home eventually. Um now the interesting thing with Skylar Brindamore is the Keynes did not give him a qualifying offer. So if they sign him, it will be a brand new contract with you know uh under new terms. Um and Josiah Slavin, I believe, I mean, um I I I can't imagine why they wouldn't resign him and bring him back to Chicago, but you know, perhaps he wants to move on, so that'll be interesting.

SPEAKER_01 23:27

Yeah, and and uh you know Katie and I talked a little bit about that. And uh could he head out to Colorado and be closer to home and family? Sure, he could play with the Eagles next year and and and do that too, so maybe that's a possibility for him. I agree with you. I don't think Mike Riley's coming back. I don't I don't see the point. And he's probably gonna want to play somewhere. I mean, he hardly played last year. Um and the other two guys are really would be Chicago bound. But I mean uh Skylar Brindamore to me was uh was a great depth center in Chicago. He could come up and play a few games if he had injuries or whatever, but uh we'll have to see how that plays out. On the restricted free agent side, um Viktor Noychev, Caden Primo, Justin Robot, all from Chicago, and I know they've been tendered offers, so I expect they'll sign. Ronan Seeley, who I spoke a lot about last year, he had a tremendous season, uh won the unsung Hero of the Year Award for the Wolves. He was just incredible, I thought in the blue. He filed for arbitration, which was kind of interesting. So we'll have to see how that plays out. Uh, it's possible that he wants to get noticed or he wants to become a free agent so he can go to another team. If uh if the canes don't match the arbitrator's uh price point, they can uh let him go and he'd be an unrestricted free agent. So we'll have to see what happens with Seely. He's been around four or five years, so maybe that's what he's thinking on his side. Um, you know, the Chicago Wolves are kind of decimated, as I mentioned. They are they're gonna be looking for some players for sure. And um they even have some players that they had signed last year to the Wolves directly. Uh Nikita Pavlichev, Evan Beerling were a couple of them, pretty good players for Chicago. Don't know if they're coming back either. A couple of things that I think are interesting and getting a lot of attention, though, for the Cates, because it's a quiet summer and there's not much to talk about. Of course, the big one is Alexander Nikishan. Uh we've heard a lot about Nikkeishan. Uh is he going to be traded? Is he going to be re-signed? What kind of deal is going to happen? You know, a couple of interesting things. As we took a look at uh the season as it unfolded for Nikishan, uh during the regular season, he was playing over 18 minutes a game, average time on ice. And he had some games where he played well over 20, you know, with the when the injuries were taking place. Into the playoffs, he averaged 1449, but he

Alexander Nikishin Role & Future

SPEAKER_01 25:49

had five games under 13 minutes. So they were really sheltering him. Katie, what are your thoughts on Alexander Nikisha?

SPEAKER_00 25:59

Um, if he comes back, and I think perhaps I give it a slightly more likely chance that he does rather than gets traded. Um I think he would I think what he wants more than anything is he wants to see his role expanded. He doesn't want to be pegged into that third pairing role for a long time, and so he wants to see the path that even if he's back with Ghost again next season, that there is a way that he can assert himself and move up the lineup and get to that top pair because that's what he was used to in the KHL. Obviously, the NHL is a whole different ball of wax, but he was the captain, he was the top pairing defenseman, he was the top power play guy, and he wants to know that he has the opportunity to seize those roles. Um, the other thing that was a little off, I guess, about last season is the fact that we were also excited for boom to come and join the Kanes. But the one thing we just didn't see enough of was the boom, both when it came to the big hits as well as that huge shot. So that's another thing I would like to see if he comes back, as I want to see him lean more into that boom part of his game. Yes. And also hopefully not have the coaching staff prevent him or discourage him from leaning into that side of his game because I do think it can be very effective. Obviously, he needs to be careful with how he does it. He has had a couple of hard hits that he has been on the receiving end of and has kept him out, um, like in the playoffs. But there is another level for him to get to for sure. How this all sorts out as far as contract if he stays will be very interesting. And I think in a lot of ways it will be telling of how the Canes view him for the future moving forwards, as is he a cornerstone piece to their defense or is he a temporary placeholder until they can find someone or something better? So that's in in a offseason that has been very quiet and very uneventful so far. It is definitely the most interesting piece of chatter out there is what is going to become of Nikishan.

SPEAKER_01 28:12

Yeah, I mean, we had high hopes for Alexander Nikishan, of course, uh coming off uh his play in in uh Russia. And of course, I covered a lot of his action with Nick Bass on the Keynes prospect side, and it seemed like every month he was doing incredible things. And he uh you might recall we talked a little bit about the playing time he was getting, and he actually in the playoffs he would play over 30 minutes regularly on his team. I mean, it's incredible, right? He's a beast. And so so sure, he comes over and it's been quite a change for him. But you know, the first year for rookies, it's not surprising, right? They come in, they have to figure out the ropes, and he had several other challenges, of course, uh language and moving to a new country and learning the Kane system. I mean, come on, you want to load it up against a player, I think we did that for him. Um, and you know, he most nights was outstanding. He played uh he played very well a good part of last season. So I'm of the of the group that uh really you know thinks he's a guy that's gonna take a major step forward with this uh next coming season and the seasons that follow. Aaron, where are you on Nikatian? Do you want to keep them? Do you are you happy to move them? What's the deal?

SPEAKER_04 29:23

I think that it's gonna be interesting to see what they ultimately do. And I think that the Kanes are one of those organizations that's not going to move a player just to move the player. You know, they if they if they still feel like they have something here, they're gonna try to convince him to sign and convince him to stay. Um and they have the upper hand because, you know, obviously um, you know, he's an RFA and he's not subject to an offer sheet. So they can take as long as they want, they can take they can go past training camp if they want to. It's ultimately that doesn't usually go well for teams. Um the Ducks did that with Trevor Ziegris and ended up losing the players in the long run. So um I don't think that they will do that. I think that they will try to hammer this out if they're going to. But having said that, I could see a situation where they come to a mutual parting of the ways because I think that Nikishan may be from some of the rumblings I'm hearing, and you guys have heard him too, and I know this is probably coming from the agent, he may be unsure if his game really fits the canes because of how they play and because of how he plays. You know, he is one of these guys who thrives, like you said, on heavy ice time. He the more he plays in an individual game, the better he gets in that game, in each game. So he he's not somebody who's gonna be looking at it and saying, Well, I you know, I just have to pay my dues, I'll toil away on the third pairing until I'm not a rookie anymore and I can move up the he's gonna be 25 in October. Yeah. He's not that much younger than some of these, and he's he's actually older than some of the guys like Stanhoven and Blake. So if they're not seeing that potential in him now, or if they're saying, well, you have to learn to do it the right way first before we're gonna trust you with this, or before we're gonna trust you with that, he doesn't have as much time as they do to waste.

SPEAKER_02 30:59

Right.

SPEAKER_04 31:00

Waiting for the Kanes to decide if he's their kind of player or not. And I mean, we have the recent history. We have Marty Natchez. How many years did Marty Natchez spend trying to become a Carolina Hurricane before he became a Colorado Appalachia and is doing extremely well and thriving there? I don't think Nikeishan, you know, Natchez was a lot younger when he started that journey. Nikishan is looking at this probably as well, do I want to be 28, 29 years old, and I'm still playing on the third pairing because I'm behind Slavin and Miller and I can't move up. And Rod won't play me on my off wing, you know, because he doesn't like to do that. So there's these are questions that he's got to be asking and his agent has to be asking. So I would not be surprised if he was moved.

SPEAKER_01 31:44

I would not. I mean, I think I think you've hit something which is interesting. I mean, there are some decisions that are gonna come on the blue line in the next year. Okay, because we have uh Shane Gossespare and we've got uh Jalen Chatfield whose contracts are up. So, you know, something has to happen with those guys, and I I think that's you know, if they're gonna keep those guys, I think that's fine. But if if, as an example, Shane Gostasbere is gonna move on, they're gonna need a power play quarterback. And here's the guy that can do it for them. So, you know, uh there's a lot of moving parts here, and and for sure, uh they could they would be happy to move Nikishan. The it's a business if they get something in return. And and the big thing is what can they get in return for Alex Nikkeishan? And you know, can they make it worthwhile to give up a player of that with that significant potential that he has? Um I I I think it's tough. I mean, you can go up and down you know the NHL rosters all you want, you're not gonna find the players. It's hard to find them. And you know, it's it's uh I just don't see a deal that makes sense. I mean, you hear about crazy things. The Rangers thought they were gonna do a deal for Nikkei. Who are they giving up? They haven't got anything. St. Louis. And we keep hearing about guys like Jake Neighbors and other places. Come on, you're wasting my time. So, you know, where are these deals that are gonna be made for a guy like Alex Nikisha?

SPEAKER_04 33:13

Well, that's part of the process. I think Tulski would like to find out what people are gonna offer, you know, because you you want to see that. But but I also think that, you know, when you look at the whole situation, it's it's one of those things where, you know, if they're gonna trust him to take ghost role on the power play in another season or two, then they need to trust him with the second unit. They need to give it to him and and and not constantly pull him off the minute there's a little wobble because you know that's that's not part of the process. If you're if you're constantly pulling the player out of the situation because it didn't go perfectly, then the message the player gets is it I have to be perfect, yes, or I'm not gonna get this, and I can't make any mistakes, and then they start playing a lot more that then you stop seeing the boom, right? You stop seeing the the risk taking, you stop seeing the things that make that player that player. And that's what I think that they're looking at with this situation. And then the other thing, too, and this is a big question are the canes going to try to maximize their chances of winning another cup in the stall and Martinook era? Because that era is coming to an end. They might move a player like Nikitian to get someone who's going to help them win now for the next two or three years.

SPEAKER_02 34:24

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 34:25

I don't know who that would be. And I like you said, those players are out there, but are are is the are the other teams willing to move them? Some of them they might be, because some of them are kind of closer to the end of their careers and they need youth and they need you know their rebuilding. So who knows? It'll be very interesting to see what they what they do.

SPEAKER_01 34:41

Well, certainly watching Jordan stall this year, I don't think we have to worry for a couple of years about Dorothy.

SPEAKER_04 34:46

Exactly. But Jordan That's the whole thing. Do they maximize that window?

SPEAKER_01 34:50

Correct.

SPEAKER_04 34:51

And if they maximize that window, they might not be wanting to wait for Alexander Nikishan to finish developing.

SPEAKER_01 34:56

Well, I think you made a good point, too, Aaron, that we've seen this before where you know a player got caught up in his knickers because you know, every time he did something wrong, he was pushed onto the bench or you know, they were doing different things to him. We know who that is, and that's Yasperi Kokaniami. And that leads us to an interesting part of the conversation is what is the disposition of Kokina? I mean, folks have been kind of thinking he's gone for a long time and we're not seeing anything. Katie, what's your thought on Yasperi Kokaniami?

SPEAKER_00 35:28

Well, we heard reports this summer that during the trade deadline last season that the Canes were offered a second or third round pick, something like that, for Kokanyami, and they chose not to accept that deal, and

What To Do With Kotkaniemi

SPEAKER_00 35:40

they chose not to accept it because they recognized that they needed center depth. Thankfully, the Keynes didn't have an injury bug to deal with during the playoffs. But what would have happened if Stancoven, Aho, Stahl, uh, or Jen Kevin had gotten hurt at some point? They need somebody to come in and play center, not just a forward, a center. And that's why they helped those KK is because KK knows the system. He knows the players, he can come in and eat up those minutes if called upon. I think the Kanes are in a similar situation moving into this next uh season, is they have a cap space. They have tons of cap space. They don't need his four plus million dollar salary off the books in order to build their roster. Their roster's done pretty much and taken care of. So they have the luxury, if they want to, to say there's not a lot of center depth out there in the league. So we're gonna hold on to KK and keep him for ourselves in case one of our centers gets injured or in case another team gets so desperate for a center that they are willing to give us enough back in return to make it worth our while to move him out. So I I just I think the Kanes find themselves in the luxury of a waiting, of being able to wait it out and see what happens and make the best decision for them. As far as KK is concerned, I know it's not ideal. I know he would prefer to be playing, I know he'd prefer to show what he has, but at least he knows this team. He's got friends on the team. You could find yourself in worse positions than what he's in, bringing home that particular paycheck and just still getting to hang out with Jarvey and Fishy and all of his buddies on the canes. So it is what it is for right now. I think he will get moved eventually, but not until a team is willing to meet the price demands that the canes are asking for him.

SPEAKER_01 37:32

Yeah, and and his name's on the Stanley Cup, so I think he'll have his turn with the cup, which is uh which is always fun too. So yeah.

SPEAKER_04 37:44

I I think Katie's right uh overall, but uh the one thing that I would say is that the the surefire clue, if it happens as a separate deal, if it doesn't happen all in the same deal, the surefire clue that they will be ready to move him is if they do acquire a depth center of some kind or make some other movement center. Now, I say depth center or other movement center because there are some people that still believe that if they, you know, wish and pray hard enough that the um that Dylan Larkin will add the Carolina Hurricanes to his now four team list because he just added the Dallas Stars. I think it is highly unlikely that Larkin will add the Canes to his list, and I don't think that he will be coming to Carolina. But if, for instance, the Kanes decided to or were able to make an acquisition of that type, then of course Kokanyemi would be one of the ones going out the door. But otherwise, if they pick up a depth center before the end of the season, that gives them the ability to make the trade without being in that same hole, like Katie said, you know, you can't have I mean you look at Chicago's roster right now, they definitely don't have anybody who come up and fill it. And one of the interesting things, and I hate this in a lot of ways, but one of the interesting things out there is that there are some people who know the Keynes pretty well that are speculating that Kanyemi will start the season on wing because of Seth Jarvis being out and that they will not actually bring in Nadeau and bring him up. And I would hate that from the Nadeau perspective because Bradley Nadeau needs to play. But I understand the thinking because if you bring in Nadeau, where does he go? Does he go next to Aho and Svechnikov on the top line? Do you break

Bradly Nadeau Fit & Line Choices

SPEAKER_04 39:22

apart the chemistry of Stenkoven and Blake? Do you try to balance him opposite Jordan Stahl with Nick Ehlers on the other wing? It is a problem that they would have to figure out. And having uh Kokinyemi come in and slide in at wing on probably Stahl's line would probably be easier for them than moving all these other parts. So, you know, um, because then they could just promote um guys up the lineup, you know, they could have Martinook up there, they could have Robinson up there. We know we know perfectly well that Aho plays well with those guys, and it would be fine for the early part of the season. We're probably talking about a month to six weeks, you know, and that would um allow teams to, you know, hopefully see Kokinyemi being able to play and make a little bit of an impact so that they would be more inclined to go ahead and make that trade. I don't see it. I think it's a long shot that they would do that, but there's that haunting possibility because we just don't know what their plans are for Nadeau. So that's where I'm with that.

SPEAKER_01 40:20

Well, a couple things. Um Bradley Nadeau, no, he's coming up. He's gonna get that spot. There's no question in my mind. He's earned it. He's no, he's done everything they need to do. Where do you put it? He's uh it doesn't matter. He can go in the top line, he can go in the second line, it's fine. He's not going on the line with Stank Hoven, but he can go on the line with Stahl, and he can definitely go in the line with Aho. He's totally capable of doing it. And here's the other thing about this they have to start giving their prospects a chance to play. They can't they're gonna have a system where, hey, we there's no use being a prospect in the cane system because you'll never play on the cane.

SPEAKER_03 40:57

That's all the contenders, though.

SPEAKER_01 40:59

He has earned the right. So I have every expectation he's gonna be the guy. Um there isn't any world that I see Yes Barry Kokani as that guy.

SPEAKER_03 41:10

Well, he certainly won't be playing on the top line. But you know, that's what I'm saying, is that they can move him around on whatever wing they want to put him in.

SPEAKER_01 41:16

And let's talk about let's talk about Dylan Larkin. Now I want to mention Dylan Larkin uh because you know the Larkin stories are crazy. Where would he play on the Carolina Hurricanes? There's no spot for him.

SPEAKER_04 41:31

Well, he'd take two C and Steikoven would move. That's the thing.

SPEAKER_01 41:33

No, he's not moving. There's no way on this earth he's moving after what he did last year. Are you kidding? There's no more. No, he's not moving. And I actually told someone today on X, I said there's no possible way that that can be.

SPEAKER_04 41:46

Let's put it this way. It's not gonna happen anyway. No, Larkin's not coming to the Keynes, so we don't need to worry about it. But if the Keynes got a center of that caliber, I don't think that they would have any problem saying, Stancoven, you're gonna play wing for a season or two, and then when Stahl retires, then everybody's back at center. So I mean, I don't if they could get a stick a center of that caliber, they're not gonna say no because we have Stankhoven. They're not.

SPEAKER_01 42:07

But don't forget, don't forget, for Larkin, for Larkin, he's number three. Yep. Why would he want to come to the Keynes and be number three? Well, he doesn't.

SPEAKER_00 42:17

He's not we're not on this list. He doesn't. Katie, what were you gonna say? I I just said I was just gonna say that I'm worried that if Nadeau is the guy that comes up, is that Rod is once again going to give in to his his little pet peeves of you can't put this rookie up in the lineup, so he's gonna play Nadeau just like he did last season on the fourth line because that's that's what he does, that's what Brendan Moore does, and that Nadeau is going to struggle because that's not his role. He's not a grinder, that is not the type of game he plays. If he gets brought up, he needs to be put in a situation where he has the opportunity to demonstrate what he is capable of, and that benefits the Keynes in two different ways. If he's I the more I think about it, the more I think he should be on the Aho line, just because then you don't have to mess with the other lines. But that he would, like you mentioned, Tom, look really, really good with Stalin Ehlers because what is the dough's best feature? It's that shot of his. And who is the best playmaker on the canes, Nikolai Ehlers, when it comes to the pass and the vision and being able to find his teammate. And so the two of them could be really good, and it would be beneficial to the Kanes not only because of hopefully helping to bring the scoring that they're missing with Jarvis, but also if when Jarvis comes back and they decide that they don't have us well, first of all, they have to decide, yes, this is important enough to us. We need to find a way to keep Nadeau in the lineup, then they move somebody else. Or Nadeau has shown his value to the point where they can really get something that they need back, whether it's because of injury or fall-off at play, do they do they need a goaltender? Has something happened with the Busy Kochekov situation, whatever. And then Nadeau becomes a much more valuable asset because he has proven that he can perform at the top level in the NHL and not just be a really promising star from the AHL.

SPEAKER_01 44:27

Yeah, I mean it's definitely a trade show. Uh they've got to do something with. Him. He can't go back to Chicago in my way. There's just no there's no world for him in Chicago. Um, and you know, interestingly enough, I don't know if you saw this, but in the playoffs, he was getting a lot of coverage, so it was much tougher for him to get that big shot off. And guess what he did? He was getting a ton of assists. Like he was setting up plays left, right, and center, and and he led the you know, he led the Wolves and assists and points in the playoffs by quite a margin. So, I mean, he's a guy that can adapt to whatever's going on, and that's why I'm very bullish on on Bradley Nadeau. He's he's definitely got to be playing for the canes or somewhere. And it brings up a question. So if the canes are going to strengthen, and and I believe there's two positions that if they were ever going to do anything, to me, these are the positions that might come up. And one of them is a top six winger. Okay, we've got Jarvis out for a while. Uh, I think they're in a situation they could move Martinouke down if they did get a top six winger. I think that's fine. Um, and the other is goaltender. And you know, we're hearing discussions of hey, you know, the Canes would like to include Kokaniemi and

Big Swing Targets Winger Or Goalie

SPEAKER_01 45:39

Nikishan in the same deal. Okay, so trying to find a way if they're gonna move Kokaniami and can't get anything, you know, just on his own, can they parlay that into something by adding them to Nikitian? Are there any players that jump out at you that you say, wait a minute, well, okay, if we're gonna send those guys, here's someone I would like to see the Kanes pick up.

SPEAKER_00 46:03

I I know you're not big on this person, Tom. We've had this discussion many, many times. But just like the talk with Nadeau and why he'd be a good match with Ealers, is we have a lot of playmakers on the Canes and not a lot of guys who shoot first and pass second. And so if there was a world in which the Kanes could convince the Dallas Stars to trade Jason Robertson, that is a player I would love to see. I know. I know what has been said in the past as far as his skating. He does have a good 200-foot game, though. He does have really good metrics when you go and and look under the hood as far as um as far as that's concerned. He does play a high possession game, which works in the Kane system. He would need to be paired with a player or two that would be more of the board battle, get in the corner uh type of player, but he finds the soft ice in the middle of the ice. He knows where to go to be able to be found by his linemates and be able to get high quality scoring chances, and he does shoot. He is a really good goal scorer. He had 45 goals last season, 96 points. Now, do we expect him to get those kinds of totals with the Kanes if he were to join us? No. But he would still get quite a few. He could get 40 still. He could probably still he'd still have over 80, maybe even 90 points. And he's got one more very good year on that contract, and the canes could spend that year trying to convince him to extend, or if Dallas wants more in return, sign the extension before he is traded over. So Robertson Robertson is one winger out there that I really think could be of value to the Kanes. So we'll we'll see if if the stars knuckle under and f and move on from him, because it's probably not likely, but that would be my favorite move.

SPEAKER_01 48:03

Yeah, I mean, Jason Robertson, okay, yeah, sure. I I'm concerned with his foot speed and some other things, but he had 96 points last year and 45 goals, so I think I can live with him. Yeah, he's a heck of a player, there's no question. Uh anyone on your radar, Aaron?

SPEAKER_04 48:21

Well, I know you and I talked about Matthew Nice a little bit when we last talked. And and I still think, you know, is he an ideal fit for the Carolina Hurricanes? Not necessarily, but he does bring another more of that power forward game, and I think it would be nice for them to have that, especially because, you know, again, I'm I'm looking at the future. Um, you know, he's still a very young player, he's still got a lot of years left to play that game. Um eventually the Canes are going to need someone to take up the Taylor Hall spot um next to Stenkoven and Blake. Um right now, Hall is great. He's doing a great job there. Um but we know his his age, and we know that certain to certain times players will start to fall off, you know, at different rates. You don't know anybody over 33, 34. You start watching those years and seeing how they're doing. So Hall is definitely not somebody they're looking to replace right now. But if you brought in someone like Nice, um he would probably eventually slot in on that left side next to those two. Um and again, that power game is something that um works well within uh what Rod Brindermore wants players to do. We've seen it with Spechnikov, you know, it's it's you're you're getting in there, for checking hard, making life miserable for the guys that are you're coming up against. Um I don't think Toronto's gonna move him. I don't think there's much of a chance. I don't I really don't think they would move him for a package like we're talking about. Um and I definitely don't think the stars would move uh Robertson without you know probably getting Stankoven back, which is a non-starter.

SPEAKER_01 49:46

So and you know what I think you're I think you're right too, Aaron. I mean, these are great players, we'd love to have them, but uh I don't see either one of those players leaving their teams. That seems to be more the standard now. Uh and that's a great segue into the RFA office sheet thing. I thought we'd spend a minute or two on this because it's probably doesn't demand much more than that. Uh some teams jumping off. We heard Barrett Hayton with New Jersey, he signed back with Utah. Leo Carlson, the big noisy uh you know offer from the Flyers uh was matched today by Anaheim. Bab Almidjikov, there were rumors the Keynes were actually sniffing at a possible offer sheet for him. He signed back with Anaheim before anything happened.

Offer Sheets As Leverage & Threat

SPEAKER_01 50:31

And the one that we keep hearing is Simon Evanson, that's that's something thrown against the wall by uh Elliott Friedman. That's foolish. There's no way they're letting Evanson go. They've got lots of cap space. He's staying with them. And the same thing with Adam Fantilli, if you start to think he might be a future cane, forget it. So all of these guys, it's not, you know, there's no there's going to be no movement on the RFAs in my mind. Has anybody got any thoughts other than that?

SPEAKER_04 50:56

I think Carolina's become um pretty good at weaponizing the threat of an offersheet. You know, um they they they uh if there is a player that they want that is an RFA that is offersheet eligible, they will tell the team you know what, we we want to sign, we want to trade you for this player. We want to we want to we're coming here with a fair offer. Um if you decide you don't want to accept our offer, we will explore the possibility of offershooting them. And it's you know, just because teams have space and can match, I mean, Anaheim had space and they matched Carlson like we were talking about earlier. $18 million a year for five years. They have Cutter Gochie to resign, they have Beckett Seneca coming up. They're they're they've blown their salary structure, and it's gonna get harder and harder for them to fill the depth spots within the next few years. They're going to be in the same boat that Edmonton has been in all these years with McDavid and Dreisidel. So the fact that the Keynes are willing to make those offers, it it's not that the team might not be able to match, but they're if you make the offer cleverly enough, you're talking about putting them in a real caps uh situation down the line. You can match it today. Well, what about next year when you've got these three guys you've got to resign, you know? And that's I think the kind of thing that they're doing. Um and as far as with even with uh Simon Edmondson, the reason I think they've explored that is because they don't know, you know, um Detroit doesn't know what what's gonna happen as far as um uh what they're what are what they're gonna end up doing with Larkin once they move him. They're gonna have to bring in more people, they're gonna have to have cap space for that. Yeah. Well, if you tie up too much money in your defense, then how are you gonna replace Larkin? You're not gonna have the cap space to sign somebody. So I I think it's interesting to me that Tolkien's willing to do this and play these games because he's using them in a way that teams haven't traditionally used them. And we know that this because we know he did this with Keandre Miller. He told them, you know, if you if you won't give us the player, we're gonna offer and and New York wouldn't have been able to match that. So um so it I I think that's where the speculation comes from. I think that's where you get these insiders talking about the Keynes might do this or the Keynes might do that. Um I I do think that they want teams to be aware that they have this in their back pocket and will use it. So that's interesting. It's it's a change from how business has been done in the past.

SPEAKER_01 53:09

Oh, sure, for sure. And I mean St. Louis did it a couple of years ago. I mean, it's it's not anything new. I mean, they they got uh a couple of pretty good players, Broberg and Holloway, that uh you know, from from the Oilers. And they're both key players for uh for St. Louis now. Um yeah, I for sure the Keynes are in on everything. I mean, that's the reality, that anything that's going on of any relevance, Eric Tulski's talking to them. And most times he's just talking to the thing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 53:34

You uh you heard about the the possibility that they had floated that the canes might have used an offersheet as a way of negotiating between two other teams. And that was an interesting idea. I mean, if they if they ever do that, that loophole will probably get closed. But that's a really that's a really clever way to go about okay, you can't afford to offersheet the player, but you want him, we'll offersheet him for you and trade him to you for this consideration back that is perfectly fine with us, even though it doesn't match the offersheet considerations. That would be if everyone anybody ever does that, that will be brilliant.

SPEAKER_01 54:05

So well, don't forget, I mean, there's very few general managers who have the wizardry of of Eric Tulski. I mean Absolutely. He's brilliant. So he he concocts this stuff. I mean, he he was he's done a number of things, as we know, with contracts and other things where he's he's created very cre he's done very creative things that that nobody else could do, and and uh and and he's doing it again. He's always trying to find a way to to maximize the return for the canes. So with that, um, you know, hitting the closing thoughts, do we think the canes run with their current team this year? And if so, do we feel good about it? Katie?

SPEAKER_00 54:45

I think so. I mean, like we talked about before, Nikatian's really the only question mark at this point. So I have a feeling they're gonna say, this is the group we won with, they want to be here, they're canes. Let's give them a shot. Let's see what they can do. Let's see if

Run It Back & Late Summer Watch

SPEAKER_00 55:00

they can run this back. Let's see if Busy can be a starter or at least a long-term tandem partner with Kochekov. Let's see if Piotr has bounced back from his injury and has regained the form we know he's capable of. Let's see uh let's see what we get out of Stankhoven with a now that he's got a full season under his belt at center and has built that confidence, what he is able to produce over the long term. Was what happened at the end of last season in the playoffs just a flash in the pan, just a really good hot streak that he had, or is this something that he is able of sustaining long term, him and his line, of course. Um just lots of lots of possibilities, lots of interesting nuance that I think the canes will just say, hey, let's give them a shot. And if they're able to run it back, then let's defend the title with the group that brought us.

SPEAKER_01 55:53

I agree.

SPEAKER_04 55:56

I always hold out the possibility that there will be a late summer move because I think that the canes have had a tendency to do that, you know, especially when they have. I mean, even with even without moving anybody out, they have around eleven million dollars in cap space. That's that's without and that's without making the obvious moves, you know, um trading Kokanyami, maybe trading Nikitian. They still have eleven million dollars in cap. And they're not gonna use even if they sign Nikitian, they're definitely not using all of it.

SPEAKER_02 56:27

No.

SPEAKER_04 56:28

So and I'm still ambivalent about that, like I said. But I think that it wouldn't surprise me if they were to pull off one of those um kind of late August moves that that has the you know journalists scrambling because there, you know, finally is something to talk about before you get into the uh to the preseason. And it'll be close to the preseason this year because preseason's early this year, so um I I just I don't think they're ever really satisfied. I think they're always looking for those players that can make the team a little bit better. And they continue to do that in the year, too. It's not like it's gonna stop because the preseason is over. I mean, um, but ideally, if you're gonna bring in, let's say you're gonna bring in a goaltender, let's say you're gonna bring in, you know, a a a winger like Tom was talking about. Ideally, you want those players on the roster for the opening day of preseason. You want them on the roster for the opening day of training camp because we all know it's a key factor for the Keynes that getting players up to speed does not happen all that easily when they come in at the trade deadline. So I think there'll be a move. I don't know what it'll be, but I think there'll be a move before we get to the end of the summer. I think it'll be something that we will be talking about here. But maybe that's just wishful thinking. I don't know. For the most part, for the most part, uh, I think we're in we like our group territory, or as people are saying these days on the internet, we like our champs. So yes.

SPEAKER_01 57:55

The one thing I will say though is that the trade deadline last year, they ended up with capsule. So i it's kind of a a changing time a little bit with Eric. He he's he's being very selective in what he wants to do, and it better be the right move in his mind. As we know, he's gotten to the point where he's pretty well identified the players that can play for the hurricanes. Yes. Like he's got it down to a fine science. He's a scientist, so it makes sense. But he he's got it down to a fine science, right? He knows exactly what the Keynes need. And I think that's uh, you know, that's kind of what we're seeing right now. And unless he gets the deal that he thinks is right or deals, they don't happen.

SPEAKER_03 58:35

Exactly. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 58:38

So not a lot to talk about in terms of moves. I think there's some different ideas, some different thoughts that we can play with here. But, you know, it's it's uh the dog days of summer. And it could be that Eric's gonna take some vacation. I'm not sure he ever does, but it could be that Eric's gonna take a little vacation and we won't hear much for a while. And certainly it's happened right around the league. There's virtually nothing happening. I mean, zero um in terms of signings or anything else. So very, very quiet. And uh, I expect it'll stay that way for uh for the coming weeks for sure until we get closer into August and until that time takes place. So anyway, as always, great to talk. Uh Carolina Hurricanes Hockey, ladies. It's uh it's been a riot, and uh I'm not sure we solved anything today, but it was certainly great fun. And uh for those of you who have been watching or listening, of course, we're delighted you spend time with us. Uh if you like this episode, please press the like button. If you have questions or comments, please put those in the comment section. And if you want to be alerted of future episodes of Storm Tracker and hear more from these great ladies, please uh press the subscribe and the bell buttons, and we'll make sure you're alerted just as soon as they're available. As always, thank you so much for spending time with us, and we look forward to getting together with you real soon right here. Let's go back.