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In this edition of the hotstove, we share our thoughts on which teams have had the best off-seasons to date.
Todd Cordell
The Carolina Hurricanes didn't make any big splashes but they've quietly had a really good summer.
In Justin Williams, the Hurricanes added an underrated possession driving winger who consistently produces 40-50 points and can play in all situations.
Trevor van Riemsdyk gives them yet another mobile, puck-moving defenseman who can chip in offensively.
Scott Darling has never been a starter but he's posted very good numbers over the last few years, particularly at 5v5, and should have no problem providing the Hurricanes with better goaltending than they've had.
Lastly, they added a solid defensive forward in Josh Jooris on the cheap to help round out their forward core.
None of these guys are big names, but they're all effective in their roles and the Hurricanes didn't part with much, or anything, in some cases, to bring them in.
James Tanner
I think the team that had the best offseason was the Arizona Coyotes.
Now, obviously since I write about the Coyotes you're going to think that I'm just bias or whatever, but it's true.
They dumped a bad dump and chase coach whose usage of players was insane, and indefensible, and replaced him with a guy promising an uptempo game.
They acquired Raanta and his hard-to-believe $1 million dollar cap hit for a pick and a prospect, while also adding a legit 55 point centre to the lineup.
Additionally, they added Hjalmarsson, who is probably underrated because he doesn't score, but actually has some of, if not the absolute best defensive-only stats in the NHL.
When you consider how bad their team looked before these moves, I don't think any team came close to having a better off season.
One more thing: any team that didn't sign Alzner, Russell or Giardi had a pretty great off season.
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