Nikita Zaitsev, the defenseman, has had a quite precipitous decline in popularity. He was playing more than 20 minutes every night a few years back, but he has since been included as salary cap ballast in two trades and has played relatively little for the Blackhawks this season. Zaitsev is anticipated to sign a multi-year (at least three-year) contract with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL, according to Sport-Express’ Arthur Khayrullin. It looks he has elected to return home rather than see what might be waiting for him in free agency.
After moving to North America in 2016, the 32-year-old made an instant impression with Toronto, amassing 36 points, 136 blocks, and 176 hits in 72 games while playing an astounding 22 minutes per game in his first year. One year later, the Maple Leafs believed they had a key player secured for the long run when he was awarded a seven-year, $31.5MM extension for his performance.
Sadly, things didn’t turn out that way for them. Zaitsev failed to score 20 points during those seven seasons, much less return to 36. Even though he continued to play a significant role after being sold to Ottawa, his position gradually diminished, and in order for Chicago to take the final year and a half off their hands, the organization had to give up two draft picks (2023 and 2026) in exchange for him.
Zaitsev has been a healthy scratch a number of times this season in addition to missing time with illness, an upper-body injury, and a knee problem that held him out of action for 19 games. Consequently, he made a career-low 38 appearances and finished each game with a mere seven points, 70 hits, and 69 blocks in just under 16 minutes.
Chicago was never going to bring Zaitsev back, not with so many young defensemen poised to challenge for NHL full-time action. Though he might have been interested in a depth role on an NHL team, it appears he will choose the stability of a multi-year contract at home. With 118 points in 482 career games, Zaitsev will leave the NHL assuming a contract is agreed. This is a respectable career total for an undrafted player.
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