If the team is heading the direction it looks to be, I'd much rather see the kids get a chance than Heatley. He didn't look good in any of the games I saw last year.
Cheap free agents, I'd wouldn't mind if GMDM decided to add, and are probably worth looking at by people who know more than me (I'm ignoring Stempniak, Winnik, Ott, etc for the moment):
Paul Byron: Miele, but who has done a lot more with his chances. Played PK with Calgary. Not a defensive liability. High energy and fiesty. Lined up at center and wing. 7-14-21 in 47GP. Beat Klink and Chip's point total in 25 fewer games. Second highest +/- on Calgary with +6. 25yoa and wasn't qualified by Burke (size=small). Bad at faceoffs. Potentially shuttled forward with Portland.
Matt Halischuk -- 25yoa. Hurt alot. Solid defensively. Can PK, plays fiesty. Cheap 4th liner.
Andrei Loktionov -- Didn't catch in Carolina or New Jersey. Both teams that need quality forward depth. Still has some potential, but I'd much rather see Byron get a chance if we go the route of small offensive forward.
TJ Galiardi -- Lots of hustle. Only 26. Plays the PK and lineup at center or wing. No real upside, but if we need hungrier guys on the 4th, I can see the attraction if we made room ditching the potential passengers.
Drayson Bowman -- Guy tore up the WHL and has a great shot. Just turned 25. MIGHT be able to turn a corner. Worstcase=quality farm depth after camp. Played with Dwyer on the checking line in Carolina last year. Probably biased because I liked him as a prospect.
Having said all that, if someone can light a fire under Chip and Klinkhammer, I don't think the 4th line is in bad shape really. They're inconsistent which is why they are 4th line forwards, but the lack of compete is pretty inexcusable. We'll see how the wind blows this season.