Snapshots: San Jose, Kuzmenko, Bellamy

The San Jose Barracuda will be hosting the AHL All-Star festivities in 2024 after their new Tech CU Arena is opened next season. It’s interim San Jose Sharks general manager Joe Will who released a statement about the event today, as he is still also the GM of the Barracuda at the moment:

Hosting the AHL All-Star Classic is an incredible opportunity to shine light on the City of San Jose, our facilities and our organization. None of this could have been possible without the vision and support of our owner Hasso Plattner who saw the immense value in moving the Barracuda to San Jose seven years ago.

Though the Barracuda were not very good this season, they have a strong history of success since arriving in San Jose in 2015. The team has made the playoffs in five of the six times they were held, and twice made it to the third round. With the All-Star game now on the horizon, you can bet there will be an investment into some of the more well-known names in the coming years to make sure they have a strong contingent at the event.

• Another reporter has indicated that the Vancouver Canucks are on the short list for Russian free agent Andrei Kuzmenko, as Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV tweets that the team is a finalist in the sweepstakes. A decision is still not expected for another few weeks, according to Kuzmenko’s agent Dan Milstein. The 26-year-old had 20 goals and 53 points in 45 games this season and has also been linked to the Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers, Nashville Predators, and Vegas Golden Knights, among others.
• The PHF continues to make news this month, after announcing record contracts and big additions to the league leaders. Once again it’s the latter, as eight-time World Champion Kacey Bellamy has been named Scout and Player Relations Liaison for the upstart league. Bellamy, 35, was a huge part of the U.S. national team for more than a decade and won gold at the 2018 Olympics. Notably, she was also part of the PWHPA for the last two years, meaning another important figure has crossed the line.