KHL star Chooses Which NHL Franchise To Play For
The most highly coveted free agent outside of the NHL Andrei Kuzmenko will sign with the Vancouver Canucks. The 26-year-old Russian winger broke the news by sharing a photo of himself on Instagram in a #96 Canucks jersey while appearing to sign an NHL contract.
In his four seasons with SKA St. Petersburg, Kuzmenko went from decent to one of the best players in the KHL. The 5'11» winger finished second in the KHL in scoring this season, with 20 goals and 53 points in 45 games before the KHL suspended the rest of the regular season due to COVID-19.
Canucks GM Patrik Allvin has a long-standing relationship with Kuzmenko's agent. Dan Milstein spoke on the Canucks Conversation podcast about Allvin having watched and checked in on Kuzmenko over the past nine years.
Vancouver has a young Russian prospect Vasili Podkolzin who played parts of the past three seasons with Kuzmenko while playing together with SKA St. Petersburg. Occasionally playing on Kuzmenko's opposite wing. The two players' styles fit together like a glove. With Kuzmenko's vision and playmaking, and Podkolzin's shot and physicality, they could become quite the dynamic duo if the coach Bruce Boudreau decides to reunite the Russians.
Kuzmenko can't officially sign with the Canucks until July 13, when free agency opens league-wide, according to TSN's Pierre LeBrun. But his agent Dan Milstein has confirmed Kuzmenko's intent to sign with Vancouver, saying
| POLL | ||
What role will Andrei Kuzmenko play with the Canucks next season? | ||
| Top Six | 60 | 24.9 % |
| Top Nine | 78 | 32.4 % |
| Healthy Scratch | 66 | 27.4 % |
| Superstar for the Canucks | 37 | 15.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
