Oilers acquire Nikitin from Blue Jackets

The Columbus Blue Jackets traded defenseman Nikita Nikitin to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a fifth-round pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, the teams announced Wednesday. Nikitin, 28, was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, but according to multiple reports the Oilers signed him to a two-year, $9 million contract. The 6-foot-4, 223 pound Nikitin from Omsk, Russia had two …