Best blue line in hockey

they don't need to but it seems like overkill to me when you could probably use another point-scoring forward. great blueline though i must say

Now imagine this team with Lindholm as 2C and KK/Staal running the bottom 6 lines.

The Canes are 2 million under the cap WITH the comically-loaded blueline. They can just conserve cap space and still fit Lindholm or, more likely, a forward with some term in via a deadline trade. The Canes don't have to do a damned thing until March if they really want to.

That's a most righteous 3rd pairing.

Yeah, but imagine the ACGM's that 'do nothing'

Hard to believe a good ACGM post that suggests... absolutely nothing.

running Burns on the 3rd pair looks so weird but I don't think he needs to log big minutes to be extremely impactful (like Karlsson does), so I guess this works. I would imagine DeAngelo gets 3rd pairing role

Then the Canes can run Orlov-DeAngelo. That's still hilarious.

They don’t need to move any, but they’re still gonna move Pesce before the season starts.

If they get the right compensation. If they don't, own-rentaling will still be super-valuable. I'm saying that the Canes are the team with all of the leverage in any trade talks because they are 2 million underneath the cap WITH all of those defensemen.

This is a ridiculously good lineup as-is, and having quality defensive depth come playoff time is a huge asset.

Yes, they could use another scoring threat up front, but that can be acquired at the deadline.

The only variable is if the team sees more value in getting assets for Pesce this offseason instead of treating him as an own rental for the year. The decision will likely depend on what they’re offered in trade and who they can plug in to improve the roster overall. I know they trust Chatfield a lot, and they could us the extra cap space to bring in a guy like Tarasenko.

I honestly think now that the likes of Tarasenko are gone, sitting back for the rest of the offseason should be the move. Run a stacked d-core and a solid offense into the season and save that cap space for a move likely for a forward at the deadline to further stack the team. Sending Coghlan down gives you about 2.8 to work with which is plenty to add at the tdl.

I may be in the minority but I had 'zero' interest in Tarasenko. Glad to see that ship sail. Something about him just has that Pacioretty/Semin smell to it. I think we should take our time and try to work out a bigger fish with longer term. Tarasenko is going to hit UFA and chase a better deal next year anyway.

I wouldn't say that there should've been "zero" interest. Just like Pacioretty, it was a totally free shot for no draft assets. Thing is, though, I wonder if the Canes genuinely can chase a longer-term add if teams like St. Louis/Nashville/Pittsburgh/Washington further crater by the trade deadline.

I just said "I" had zero interest. I know the Canes did, but after the initial attempt fizzled seems they moved on. There is something to be said for waiting through the season for an opportunity to arrive, but I know that Waddell likes to take care of business in the off-season if at all possible. I would try to pursue that trade now. If the deal isn't right, then patience, but I think this team should try to head into the season opener with the team they really want. And at the moment, there are defensive pieces that will likely change.