I can understand trading Naslund for cap space but that's pretty useless to do unless you can use that space to boost our offense.
It's true that Nazzy is no longer a superstar but he's still ridiculously better than Anson Carter. I'm a fan of Carter but if Nonis ever traded Nazzy straight up for Carter I would have to detach myself from this team for a few weeks because I would be pissed off.
As good as the Sedins and Carter were last year I think you seriously overrate them. They were arguably the best 2nd line in hockey last year but they didn't post the numbers to be considered an elite 1st line. That's what the WCE was for two years. They were without a doubt the best line in hockey. Two first-team all-stars says it all.Sedins'/Pyatt have been a decent line, whereas Sedins'/Carter were quite possibly among the best lines in hockey last season.
The WCE line pre-2004 were a powerhouse. The Sedin-Sedin-Carter line LAST YEAR was a powerhouse (and I don't buy into the whole argument of this line only being as good as it was because they never faced the top d-men from other teams IMO, they still would've been just as productive ).
Actually this is one thing which I was really afraid of last year. There are HUGE expectations on the Sedins this year to replace the void left by the fall of the WCE. They are expected to make the jump from elite second liners to elite first liners. I think they'll be decent to good first liners but anything more than that is a little unrealistic. Let's not kid ourselves. The Sedin line, as solid and good as it is, pales in comparison to the WCE in its prime. I hope they can keep it up but it will be tough. They started off the year ridiculously well but I think their play has dropped off slightly in the last few games. They were completely ineffective against a very dominant Anaheim defense. I'm not slagging them or saying they can't do the job as a first line but I'm not about to cast them as being better than Nazzy.
You mention that Nazzy can't carry the second line but that's not his damn fault. The real culprit is Brendan Morrison. His 3.2 million salary is killing us. If he were playing up to his potential then we wouldn't be having this conversation. He needs to be traded unless he rediscovers his game soon.
The fact is no one on this team can carry the second line, not Nazzy, not Daniel, not Henrik. I think it would even be asking a lot of Nazzy 2001-2004 to carry his line the way his linemates have been playing. Daniel and Henrik benefit from the fact they constitute 2/3 of a line. Nazzy simply has no one to play with and if it were either one of Henrik or Daniel in the same situation they wouldn't be any more effective.
Bottomline. Nazzy is still the heart and soul of this team. Despite his drop in production he is still the most talented player out there and continues to be the "go to guy." Someone mentioned in a previous thread that when the game is on the line you want Nazzy taking the last shot not Daniel or Henrik (and that's no slight on the Sedins). Now what sense does it make to trade away your best player on a team that is struggling offensively? It makes far more sense to unload the guys who aren't producing first.
Let's not even get started on all the other ramifications of trading away the face of your franchise. That's a pretty big void to fill.