Nikita Zaitsev (A-)
I was toying between a B+ and an A- for this one.
The reason I opted for the better grade was because I think my expectations for him were too high.
He didn’t meet all of them in the end, but he still had a heck of a rookie year.
And I know, calling him a rookie doesn’t feel quite right.
Still, he came in a logged some heavy minutes on the top defensive pairing for most of the season, scoring four goals and 36 points.
Not bad by any stretch of the imagination.