I don't think there's any need to panic just yet, but there needs to be a plan in place to cope with some of the very important losses from last year.
1. The confidence that the team had with McNiven in goal is missing; to me this is very clear so far this year. I thought Bowman was a decent pick up (and the team may end up rallying around him yet), but if he's unable to inspire the confidence in his teammates to a greater extent than he has thus far, then DD needs to address it.
2. Secondary scoring does not seem to be nearly as potent as it was last year. The Palmu line posed many matchup problems for teams if they chose to key in on the Suzuki line. This year, that advantage has dissipated substantially. There's little doubt in my mind that DD needs to strengthen the 2nd line considerably, preferably at C.
3. Centorame's presence on last year's PP probably hasn't been fully appreciated. This area is not as critical as the other 2 because Durzi and Phillips should be able to adequately fill that role, however, if the PP is not functioning where it ought to be by trade deadline then I think DD will want to consider addressing it.
I completely agree with many posters on here; IMO it's going to be evident as the season progresses that the Attack need DiPietro. The cost would be great, but would be well worth it IMO. I'd give Rychel the choice between Dudas and Russell, plus a younger player like Beamish, Groulx or Pryce as well as picks.
I would also like DD to pursue Luchuk out of Windsor as well. The cost would be far more reasonable than someone like Brown or Sokolov with probably a similar impact. He would provide strength to 2nd, taking some of the weight off of the 1st line, plus he can play D on a PP Unit.
If DD wants to improve the potentness of the PP from the blueline before the deadline, then I think Marcus Crawford out of Saginaw is someone to look at. I think he would do very well in OS.