If (huge IF) Landeskog and Nichushkin return at 100% this roster would just be a 4C and 3RHD away from being serious contenders, albeit still with some questions in net.
Drouin - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Landeskog - Mittelstadt - Nichushkin
Lehkonen - Colton - O'Connor
Wood - 4C - Kovalenko
Toews - Makar
Girard - Manson
Kylington - RHD
Georgiev
Annunen/backup
Ideally the 4C is good on the PK and on faceoffs since those aren't Coltons strong suits and that's the biggest weakness in the bottom 6. In an ideal world even go as far as to add a 3C to push Colton to the wing and roll with a bottom 6 of:
Colton - 3C - Lehkonen
Wood - Kovalenko/Wagner - O'Connor
I disagree. Would still want a Top 9 winger to slot LOC down as well.
I'm also not convinced that's all we'd need on Defense either. I like the guys we added as I think there's upside to both Brannstrom and Kylington but I still think we end up needing more of a Top 4 guy at the deadline rather than a bottom pairing guy.
At Mansons age I simply don't trust him to hold up as Top 4 guy anymore.
That being said, IMO there's still a clear path to being a cup favorite this year. We don't have a 2025 1st, but we do have a 2025 2nd which should absolutely be enough to get a Top 9 winger at the deadline. And then we do have a 2026 1st, Ritchie, Goulash, Behrens, all solid pieces to land a Top 4D as well.
I'd like to think in that scenario in early March where Nuke is clean, Landy is playing and playing really well... I'd like to think CMac rewards this group by putting all the chips in the middle and loading up one more time.. But obviously that's still a ways away and we just will have to wait and see how it all plays out.