When the Carolina Hurricanes acquired Russian centerman Evgeny Kuznetsov from the Washington Capitals at this year's trade deadline, they were getting a player that had fallen out of favor with his organization.

Kuznetsov was coming off of a stint in the NHL's player assistance program and had been waived and subsequently reassigned to the AHL. 

He desperately needed a change of scenery and Carolina provided that, as the team traded a 2025 third-round pick for him.

"I'm happy to be here and in a new chapter in my life," Kuznetsov said. "That was something that I was looking for and it's a perfect match for me."

While things have been going great so far in Carolina, two goals and five points in eight games, Kuznetsov will always be tied to the Capitals.

He played over 700 games with the organization registering 568 points, but above all else, he led the team to their first ever Stanley Cup in 2018, leading the league in playoff scoring that year with 32 points

Washington was a special place for Kuznetsov. 

It's where he raised not only a Stanley Cup, but also his family and it's a place where he was surrounded by friends.

Those friends, family and memories, both good and bad, make up what was a massive part of his life and that will always be with him.

"I want to say thanks to the whole Caps organization and the fans," Kuznetsov said in his first presser with the Carolina media. "It was 11 years. Both of my kids were born there. That city has a massive chunk of my heart. Unfortunately, I have to leave that way, on that note, but it's life. No regrets in my life. I'm going to remember, for the rest of my life, my time over there. It was amazing. Amazing memories, bad and good. All kinds of memories. 

Now he returns just two weeks after the trade in what will almost certainly be a raw and emotional moment.

When Kuznetsov receives a standing ovation and welcome back tribute, he won't have been the only Hurricane to have experienced that treatment either as teammate and best friend Dmitry Orlov was also welcomed back for the first time on Jan. 5.

Things didn't go the way anybody expected or wanted in Kuznetsov's last two years in Washington, but he's accepted that and taken full responsibility for his actions.  

While his aim is to keep moving forward, he won't forget his past.

"I was never running away from the mistakes I've made in the past. I never regretted those. I think it's an amazing life learning point and I've learned a lot. This is my last opportunity. This is my last chance. Everything is in my power right now."

But perhaps, at least just for tonight, he can simply reflect on all the good memories he's shared with a city that will forever remember the 'Birdman.'