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2026 NHL Draft Thread

Iā€™m curious what the Canes want from Carlson. He has lost a step and isnā€™t the defensive player he has been. Is there some sheltered role for him to still provide some offensive up side? Is Nikishin gone whether we get Hellebuyck or not?
 
jeffbear said:
I like the Hakansson pick. Thatā€™s out of their normal draft profile ā€¦ big, rangy D, probably more of a stay at home type. They donā€™t normally draft those, especially out of Europe. Otherwise, looks like theyā€™re chasing more forecheck demons. Which is fine by me
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I like it a lot! Why not bet on the kid being the future replacement for Jaccob Slavin? Kid will take many years to develop, then get a couple of seasons under Jaacob's guidance and by the time the elder statesman of that D corp is clearly on the back 9 of his career, this kid will be taking over.
 
SlapShots said:
Iā€™m curious what the Canes want from Carlson. He has lost a step and isnā€™t the defensive player he has been. Is there some sheltered role for him to still provide some offensive up side? Is Nikishin gone whether we get Hellebuyck or not?
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I do suspect that Nikishin is gone ā€¦ but of course we have no idea what he would bring back. So ā€¦ weā€™ll see. He could also be back on a bridge and they move him later. Or his agent shuts up at some point.
 
NoMich said:
I like it a lot! Why not bet on the kid being the future replacement for Jaccob Slavin? Kid will take many years to develop, then get a couple of seasons under Jaacob's guidance and by the time the elder statesman of that D corp is clearly on the back 9 of his career, this kid will be taking over.
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Yeah, heā€™s just not the kind of guy they usually draft. I like that theyā€™re opening up the draft types a bit this year
 
jeffbear said:
Yeah, heā€™s just not the kind of guy they usually draft. I like that theyā€™re opening up the draft types a bit this year
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My question was not directed at you. It was just more of "why not?" in a grand scheme of things. A rhetorical question I guess.
 
jeffbear said:
I do suspect that Nikishin is gone ā€¦ but of course we have no idea what he would bring back. So ā€¦ weā€™ll see. He could also be back on a bridge and they move him later. Or his agent shuts up at some point.
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If Boom is being shopped and is in fact gone, it simply has to be for a front line player in my books. Helly...a legit 2C, hopefully Tulsky can work his magic.

I actually do not mind the bridge deal route, let's see what he has with another year or two under his belt...the old adage, "some of the best trades are the ones you never make".
 
Yeah, youā€™re almost certainly not trading a Top 6 defenseman with that much upside for picks and prospects ā€¦ not when youā€™re in a Cup window. I donā€™t think anybody needs to sweat that.

As for bridging him, honestly Iā€™d pass unless they get a completely different vibe from Nikishin personally than his agent is throwing out in the press. If you make the NHL All Rookie team, notch 30+ points and win a freaking Stanley Cup and your response is "I thought Iā€™d give it a year and Iā€™m not sure about the fit for meā€ then Iā€™m inclined to default to not letting the door hit you on the ass on your way out. I donā€™t like a single thing about that stance from the playerā€™s camp, strategy or not. Itā€™s literally made of red flags. If they got a different level of buy-in from the player on his way out of town, then maybe itā€™s a different situation but it sounds like they started shopping him basically straight away.
 
Players need to exercise caution in who they elect to speak for them. Too many examples of players not on top of what their agents communicate. Players also need to be aware that often money and ability to consistently contend for a Cup may be mutually exclusive. Not often you get to have it both ways.
 
Honestly? Given Nikiā€™s whole thing since heā€™s been here, Iā€™m not willing to assume that his agent is talking out of school. Iā€™m assuming that heā€™s accurately reflecting his clientā€™s wishes. I like the kid, and love the shot, but if heā€™s not all in after THAT season, then this is the wrong franchise for him.
 
jeffbear said:
Honestly? Given Nikiā€™s whole thing since heā€™s been here, Iā€™m not willing to assume that his agent is talking out of school. Iā€™m assuming that heā€™s accurately reflecting his clientā€™s wishes. I like the kid, and love the shot, but if heā€™s not all in after THAT season, then this is the wrong franchise for him.
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echoes on Necas and his father.
 
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