Nikitin in a Trade & Sign

Late last week, there was a deal in place that saw the negotiating rights for potential unrestricted free agent defenseman Nikita Nikitin move from Columbus to Edmonton for a conditional asset.  On Wednesday, the trade was completed, as the Oilers send the Blue Jackets a 5th round draft pick this year and the Oilers turned around and announced that they signed the Russian blueliner to a new 2-year deal, worth $9 million.

Nikitin didn't have a great year with the Blue Jackets in 2014, playing only 66 games, scoring 2 goals and 15 points.  The 28-year old dealt with injuries to the head and some other lower-body issues during the year, not to mention a healthy scratch through the year, which all compounded on a rough season.

In the 2012 season, he topped out with 7 goals and 32 points in 61 games, ranking 37th among all defensemen and thus giving the league a taste of what kind of potential he has among the big boys.

This move for the Oilers adds some potential to their blueline, which is still running a bit thin, as we enter the off-season.  Nikitin joins Justin Schultz and Andrew Ference as the only three signed defensemen on their projected roster and those three are not exactly appearing as a dominant force on paper.  Nikitin and Schultz will be looked towards to carry a lot of the offensive load from the back end in the 2015 season.

The Oilers are still quite healthy in the cap department, as the 12 players they have signed on to their projected roster is only coming in at $47.2 million, which should give them plenty of play. Edmonton is expected to be a real player in the off-season, as they try to right the ship and find their way into the playoffs in the rough & tumble Western Conference.