Maple Leafs' Nikita Zaitsev: Could see serious ice time in 2016-17

Zaitsev is performing well at the World Championships for Team Russia and is showing that he could be good enough to log heavy minutes almost immediately on the Leafs blue line in 2016-17, reports Sportsnet.ca.

"He's gonna be great D for Maple Leafs," said Russian teammate Evgeny Kuznetsov (Capitals). "I think he's gonna play right away and he's gonna play like 20-25 minutes." Zaitsev is best known for his strong skating, but at 6-foot-2, he's physically prepared to play in the NHL. And his time in the KHL has matured his game. Zaitsev is coming off an excellent performance in the KHL playoffs, leading all defenders in scoring with 13 points in 20 games.