On Monday, a report out of Russia indicated that forward Evgeny Kuznetsov was expected to terminate the last year of his contract with the Carolina Hurricanes to sign a four-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League. However, Kuznetsov’s agent, Shumi Babaev reported that although there has been some interest from several KHL teams this summer, it is “too early to talk about the hockey player’s return to Russia” (X link).
Babaev didn’t entirely rule out a return to Russia by Kuznetsov but it doesn’t look like it will come this summer.
In a follow-up statement, Babaev said, “Evgeny still has a year left on his contract with Carolina. SKA and other KHL teams have approached him. After Kuznetsov’s contract with Carolina, they are ready to discuss the possibility of Evgeny’s appearance.“ (X link)
It appears that both Kuznetsov and his representation are willing to play out the final year of his contract before entertaining the idea of returning to his home country.
It would not be surprising to see Kuznetsov return to Russia to continue his professional career as he has not been the player he was from 2015-2022. In his age-23 to age-29 season, Kuznetsov was one of the premier centers in the game as he scored 139 goals and 450 points in 502 games while leading the playoffs in scoring with 32 points in 24 games in 2018 to help the Washington Capitals win their first Stanley Cup championship in team history.
Issues off the ice have plagued Kuznetsov since that run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018 as he was suspended by the NHL only a few months after the playoffs as a video of him using cocaine surfaced across the internet. Kuznetsov still put together some productive seasons for the Capitals but never appeared comfortable on the ice in Washington. This culminated in Kuznetsov entering the NHLPA Player Assistance Program on February 5, 2024, and the organization placing him through waivers upon his clearance on March 2.
The Capitals finally parted ways with Kuznetsov at last year’s trade deadline by shipping him to the Hurricanes for a third-round selection in 2025 while Washington retained 50% of his salary. Kuznetsov picked up two goals and seven points in 20 games for Carolina down the stretch with an additional four goals and six points in 10 postseason contests. Outside of his modest production on the ice, Kuznetsov appeared more jovial than he had in years past.
To add a bit more context to the potential mutual termination of Kuznetsov’s contract, PuckPedia reported that there is no precedent for a player having his contract mutually terminated after having his salary retained. Realistically, Kuznetsov’s $3.9M salary in Carolina and the $3.9M retained by Washington would be removed from both team’s salary cap structure and they would no longer be required to pay him.
With only one year remaining on his eight-year, $62.4M contract, Kuznetsov could play anywhere as soon as next summer. If he has a decent year with the Hurricanes, he may look toward the NHL for interest to start before he commits to returning to Russia.
More must-reads: