Former Leafs defenceman traded to Chicago
The Ottawa Senators have now paid to get out of two contracts within the same calendar year. Last summer, it was a third and a 7th heading to Toronto with salary retained on Matt Murray. Today, it was Nikita Zaitsev.
By far the worst contract Lou Lamoriello signed as GM of the Leafs, Zaitsev and his 7x4.5M contract were traded to Ottawa as soon as Kyle Dubas took over as GM. Since then, Zaitsev has been an absolute liability on the Senators blue line. It took a clearly tanking Blackhawks team, a 2023 second round pick and a 2026 4th to move on from Zaitsev's deal. The Sens received Future Considerations, also known as Jack Squat, in return.
The Blackhawks will take on the full amount of Zaitsev's contract. This will help them to reach the salary cap floor next season with Toews and Kane's matching $10.5 million contracts coming off the books. The Hawks are currently projected to have over 38 million in cap space next season, putting them well below the salary floor. The Sens free up some cap space with the move, but knowing Pierre Dorion, it will once again be spent in the wrong places on a Sens roster filled with holes.
