As expected, veteran center Evgeny Kuznetsov is headed home to Russia. The 32-year-old has signed a four-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League, per the league.
The move was initially reported by Championat’s Arina Nuriakhmetova back on July 15 but was quickly refuted by Kuznetsov’s agent, Shumi Babaev. Kuznetsov, who was entering the final season of his contract with the Hurricanes in 2024-25, landed on unconditional waivers two days later and had his contract terminated after clearing the following day.
Last week, Babaev told Russian media that Kuznetsov was still receiving interest from other NHL teams after the mutual termination with Carolina, potentially in a ploy to drum up interest in the KHL. Now, he lands what’s assumedly a rich multi-year commitment from one of Russia’s hockey powerhouses.
Kuznetsov was still a 70-point threat as recently as two years ago, but those days are clearly behind him. 2023-24 was the worst campaign of his career and saw his lengthy stint with the Capitals end. Washington dumped the last year and a half of his $7.8MM cap-hit contract on the Hurricanes at 50% retention in a deadline deal, leaving both teams on the hook for $3.9MM against the cap for 2024-25. That cap hit vanished for both clubs when Kuznetsov’s deal was terminated earlier this month, though.
In 63 games split between the Caps and Canes, Kuznetsov produced only eight goals and 16 assists for 24 points. Those 0.38 points per game were the worst of any NHL season for “Kuzy,” including his 17-game stint as a rookie in 2013-14. Before being traded to Carolina, Kuznetsov spent time in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and was placed on waivers upon leaving, but no team claimed the full remainder of his contract.
Drafted 26th overall in 2010, Kuznetsov was once a top-six fixture in Washington and often alternated with Nicklas Backstrom as the team’s first-line center in his prime, routinely suiting up alongside countryman Alex Ovechkin. His career-best season in 2017-18 came at just the right time for the Caps, as after producing a career-high 83 points in the regular season, he led the playoffs in scoring with 32 points in 24 games to help Washington to its first and only Stanley Cup championship.
Today’s move keeps Kuznetsov with SKA through 2026, all but certainly marking the end of his NHL career. He finishes with 173 goals, 402 assists, 575 points and a +38 rating in 743 career games, 723 of which came in a Capitals sweater.
He’s the second notable former NHLer St. Petersburg brought home this summer, joining ex-Blackhawks defenseman Nikita Zaitsev.
I believe the cap is just under 20M in the KHL but SKA is a power house rich team. I’d guess 2-3M a year but maybe some side perks like a house or car or something. I’d really like to know his deal in cap hit
The saga now ends.
The KHL has a cap? LOL, I’m sure no rule bending happens there…
Maybe Tampa and Vegas can play in the K instead.
And I naively thought that you might take the summer and ask those teams to move out of your head. It never gets old watching you and your clan continually be offended by teams breaking no rules while using the cap to be successful.
It’s technically legal to have giant mega-corporations buying up all of our housing and creating a market where working people cannot afford a home.
Doesn’t make it ethical or good for us.
Comparing housing to the NHL salary cap? Where do you come up with this stuff? It’s only hockey – lighten up. Now, please explain how hockey teams playing by collectively bargained salary cap rules is unethical or, more amusing, not good for us. You seem obsessed with this stuff but none of it has ever affected my life, good or bad.
You say hello, I say buh bye. Buh bye, buh byeeee, I don’t know why you say hello, I say buh bye.
Kuznetsov really peaked in 2017-18 when he showed flashes of being a dominant player. Especially in the playoffs. I thought he was going to become a 90-100 point guy for a few years after that run.
He was productive in 2018-19, 2021-22 because the Caps had top 10 offenses and a 50 goal scoring Ovechkin to pass to. But you didn’t see the same jump and ability to take things over that you saw in 2017-18, and I think any #1 center could have put up 70-80 points on those teams. He was good but not the same.
After the offense slumped starting in 2022-23 he fell off a cliff and the only thing I saw him do well was rag the puck. Completely different player. I hope he’s happy back home and I wish him well.
Thank you Kuzy for the Cup. He was dominant, clutch, and a joy to watch. Will anyone copy his super slow mo shootout move now?