Can you guys give me a run-down on Nikitin's game please? Like most Oilers fans, I'm excited to get him. How is he defensively, offensively? How is he in the corners? Anything you can think of will be much appreciated.
An important thing to note is that what Bozwell said early in this thread is almost offensively incorrect. We have a damn good defense. Niktin isn't better than Johnson/Tyutin/Wisniewski. Savard and Murray had phenominal seasons, are younger and cheaper, and we needed to open up a spot for them. Letting Nikitin go came down to:
1. What he was going to get given previous UFA Contracts
2. We needed to open up more minutes for Murray and Savard
3. The people below him (Prout, Erixon, and Goloubef) are all waiver eligible.
Given that, this isn't us "letting him go because he wasn't good enough", more us realizing we needed to open up room for younger guys and a 4 million dollar 6th defenseman wasn't a good idea.
He's a classic defensive defensemen, so lots of blocked shots, broken up passes but not a lot to bring offensively. Not a huge hitter but plays a physical game. He's a good complimentary piece but that being said, you're not going to want to pair him with some purely offensive defenseman. As a 4th/5th guy, he'll be really good. But I wouldn't count on him for anything more than 2nd pairing minutes.
And that "won't learn english" thing is total baloney.