I’m like you. The moment I saw the rumor circulating that Edmonton apparently has interest in acquiring Nikita Zaitsev from the Maple Leafs, I was wary. Here’s another underperforming player-of-interest on a bad contract that the Oilers can’t seem to get enough of. At least this time he’s a right shot defenseman. Maybe there’s something to this guy and- like Jake Gardiner- all his weaknesses are just blown WAY out of proportion by the Toronto fishbowl media. So I looked into him and… to put it simply, my trepidation is entirely warranted.
The Who
Nikita Zaitsev is a 6’2, 193lbs Russian RD who has spent the past three years of his career playing in Toronto.