It's pretty clear that we need at least one veteran d-man in addition of Ehrhoff and Myers (if you deem him as a one).
Re-signing Tallinder would be a good choice. But I think it should be only one year deal, because after next season, when we're supposed to start to turn this tank around, he is not good enough as an top-4-guy. And I really don't like the idea of depending solely on the scenario, that McCabe/Zadorov has to be ready to take that top-4-spot after next season.
But is Tallinder ready to take a short deal like that? And with who would we replace him after next season?
I'm starting to think that we should target Nikita Nikitin. CBJ have a lot of cap used on their defense (Johnson, Tyutin, Wisniewski), so I don't think they are going to keep him, because he's going to get a clear raise. He's still pretty young and a good top-4-pairing. So he could easily be a lot of help even after next season. And I prefer the idea that Zadorov/McCabe really have to win the spot from a guy like Nikitin than that they are offered it from the silver plate.
I think Nikitin would be a realistic option if we offer him something like 4,5-5 mil. x 4-5 years. We HAVE to fill the cap space to reach the floor, so it's not a problem at all. And I think he might appreciate the idea of being able to play even top-pairing minutes (he would be a pretty good fit with Myers, I think). Sure it might get problematic when Zadorov/McCabe starts to surpass him (at least hopefully!). But I don't think it would be a problem to trade him with retaining something like 1,5 million from his caphit.
Is this idea totally stillborn? How do you guys think we should handle the situation with our defense regarding the upcoming seasons past next season?