Apparently the Oilers have interest in Nikita Zaitsev
By Cam Lewis
4 years agoAccording to Darren Dreger, the Oilers (along with the Canucks) are two teams who have interest in right-handed defenceman Nikita Zaitsev. Zaitsev, who carries a $4.5 million cap hit for five more seasons, requested a trade a few weeks ago.
There’s no doubt that Kyle Dubas is going to try his best to get Zaitsev moved this summer. Him and Patrick Marleau, both signed by Lou Lamoriello before Dubas took over as general manager, are viewed as boat anchor contracts getting in the way of the Leafs singing key restricted free agents like Mitch Marner, Kasperi Kapanen, and Andreas Johnsson.
Zaitsev was a highly sought-after free agent out of Russia a few years ago who ultimately inked a one-year deal with the Leafs. He had a very solid rookie season, posting 36 points in 82 games and helping a young Leafs squad make the playoffs. After that effort, Lamoriello took a gamble and locked up the multi-dimensional defender for seven years.
The deal hasn’t worked out for the Leafs. Zaitsev managed just 27 points in 141 games over his past two seasons and the team so desperately needed to bump him down the depth chart that they went out and paid a premium to acquire Jake Muzzin prior to this year’s trade deadline. That said, while Zaitsev’s offence dried up and he didn’t evolve into the top-pairing defender Toronto wanted, he still does some things well, particularly in the defensive zone.
Ryan Fancey of The Leafs Nation discussed what to expect from a Zaitsev trade shortly after it became clear both sides were looking for a divorce…
There’s little doubt that the Leafs are going into this trying to get back as much asset-wise as possible, but underlying all of this is their need for cap space to do other things. They don’t want money back and they don’t want to retain. Toronto is staring down five more seasons of Zaitsev’s contract carrying an AAV of $4.5-million, so if it comes down to them needing to hold onto some of that cap hit in order to get better futures, I think they’ll go the other way. For the sake of spitballing, in order to get clear of this contract completely, dealing Zaitsev for a late-round pick would be a win.
Ultimately, the goal for Toronto is to not retain salary and to not take any bad contracts back in return. With that in mind, it’s hard for me to figure out a deal that makes sense for the Oilers. I would maybe consider pulling the trigger on a Kris Russell for Zaitsev deal, given that Zaitsev is younger, plays the right side, and probably has more upside that we could see in a change of scenery. But, as Fancey suggests, the Leafs’ goal here is to get out from under that $4.5 million figure immediately, so that likely wouldn’t work.
Given Edmonton’s cap situation, there really isn’t a world in which they can afford to take on Zaitsev without giving anything back. The Leafs and Oilers just aren’t really compatible in a trade here, which is probably a good thing given the fact the Oilers don’t need more problematic contracts.
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