Rejoint: avr. 2017
Messages: 852
Mentions "j'aime": 184
How I see Zaitsev:
On a top end team, at best, Zaitsev is a 2nd pairing d-man playing 20 min/g. He can put up points, but there are better defensive d-men in the league. His contract is fair for a 2nd pairing d-man in this league. Some might even say favorable. He's got 6 more years under contract at a 4.5M$ cap hit, and he's 26 yrs old.
He doesn't get you a top line talent in return. He might get you an elite talent that is currently slumping that you hope a change in scenery would jump start said player. I think if we were talking about draft picks, he would easily fetch you a 1st round pick, and then some.
As a comparable: MTL got Jeff Petry for a 2nd round pick. Petry was a "rental" as he was a UFA at the end of the season. Zaitsev will get you more as he is under contract for the next 6 years at a decent cap hit.
Put it this way: if you had Shea Weber logging 25+ min/gp on the top pairing, you could handle Zaitsev on a second pairing with his shortcomings.