The Vancouver Canucks are reportedly getting questions from other teams about the status of Andrei Kuzmenko, who's seen his ice time dwindle.
Andrei KuzmenkoLast season saw Andrei Kuzmenko make an impressive NHL debut with 39 goals and 74 points. However, the 27-year-old winger's future with the Vancouver Canucks is in question, dropping down their depth chart with just 15 points in 25 games.
On Saturday, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman spoke of an “emerging situation” with Kuzmenko. The winger averaged just 15 minutes of ice time in five of his last six games after being scratched from two games.
Friedman said other teams inquired into Kuzmenko's status. He pointed out the Canucks are always looking to shed some salary. Kuzmenko carries an average annual value of $5.5 million through 2024-25 with a 12-team no-trade clause, according to PuckPedia.
This isn't the first time a Canucks forward has been the subject of trade speculation this year. Brock Boeser and Conor Garland were fixtures in the rumor mill from the midpoint of last season through the start of this campaign. However, the Canucks' strong start this season has silenced that chatter.
Friedman's colleague Iain MacIntyre reports Vancouver president Jim Rutherford said his club will try to help Kuzmenko improve his game. Nevertheless, the Canucks have been busy in this season's trade market.
Since September, they dealt Tanner Pearson to Montreal for Casey DeSmith, acquired Sam Lafferty from Toronto, sent Jack Rathbone to Pittsburgh for Mark Friedman, peddled Anthony Beauvillier to Chicago and acquired Nikita Zadorov from Calgary.
The Province's Patrick Johnston considers it no surprise that teams are calling about Kuzmenko, though he adds that just because a team calls “doesn't mean there's a cogent answer.” Still, he wondered if Kuzemenko's agent might speak out on his client's behalf the way he did for Zadorov last month, greasing the skids for his trade to Vancouver.
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