Speculation Brewing Over Evgeny Kuznetsov's Future in Washington
A rumor came out that Washington Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov requested a trade. He dismissed it, but how easy would it be to move him?
As the Washington Capitals struggle to remain in the playoff chase, Evgeny Kuznetsov has been mentioned as a possible off-season trade candidate. The 30-year-old center has 53 points in 73 games with a team-worst plus-minus of minus-19 entering Wednesday's critical game against the New York Islanders.
Kuznetsov was the subject of trade speculation two years ago, but nothing came of it. In a mailbag segment last week, The Athletic's Tarik El-Bashir was asked if the Capitals would revisit efforts to move him.
According to El-Bashir, the Capitals' decision-makers were unhappy with Kuznetsov's performance this season. He cited the center's inability to step up his game when injuries sidelined some key players as well as his poor defensive play.
El-Bashir followed up on Monday, citing a report out of Russia claiming Kuznetsov had requested a trade through his agent. However, he dismissed those rumors following practice yesterday.
"You know how this is. It’s just people trying to put whatever they want to get the likes and Instagram or Twitter, whatever," Kuznetsov told Sammi Silber, THN's new Washington Capitals writer. "I talked to those people. I said, ‘Where did this come from?’ There is something that we can talk later probably for sure, but at this point, there is nothing to even talk about."
Kuznetsov is a talented playmaker who's reached the 70-point plateau four times in his 10 NHL seasons, most recently in 2021-22 with a 78-point effort. He had some issues in the past, including a four-year suspension by the IIHF in 2019 for testing positive for a prohibited substance. He voluntarily sought help soon after through the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program.
If the Capitals and Kuznetsov are reaching a parting of ways, it won't be easy to trade him this summer. As per CapFriendly, he's signed through 2024-25 with an average annual cap hit of $7.8 million and a 10-team no-trade clause. The decline in his production this season won't help his trade value.