The 31-year-old has been inconsistent to open the season for the Capitals.
The Washington Capitals made a shocking move on Monday for their game in Arizona, as Evgeny Kuznetsov will be the odd man out and take a seat as a healthy scratch against the Coyotes. And for head coach Spencer Carbery, it's all part of a plan to send a message.
Monday will mark the first time that Kuznetsov has been a healthy scratch since May 3, 2021, when former head coach Peter Laviolette sat Kuznetsov and then-teammate Ilya Samosnov against the New York Rangers for disciplinary reasons.
Kuznetsov leads all Capitals forwards in ice time this season and ranks 10th among NHL forwards in that department. However, he'll have a seat tonight in hopes that it will get him back in the right headspace, per head coach Spencer Carbery.
"It's just a mental reset for him," Carbery told reporters in Tempe, Arizona on Monday. "He’s just been struggling of late to find his game. We’ve talked to him, we’ve looked at some different stuff and I think it’s a good opportunity for him to take a step back, reset mentally and focus on getting his game back to where it’s capable of being.”
The decision comes after a lackluster showing for Kuznetsov on Saturday, when he took an unnecessary roughing penalty, was a minus-3 and failed to generate anything offensively in a flat 4-1 loss. The 31-year-old was benched for the final 5:54 minutes of regulation and totalled a season-low of 15:20 minutes.
It's been an inconsistent season overall for Kuznetsov, who has four goals and five assists for nine points in 19 games and just one point in his last six outings overall. Carbery also discussed his displeasure with Kuznetsov's performance on the top line, as he hadn't been able to generate much with Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson. Kuznetsov also hasn't been able to help the ailing power play, which recently ended a 13-game PPG drought but continues to struggle this season.
Despite his stat line, he's still the Capitals' forward ice-time leader and is among the league leaders in that department among forwards.
Puck drop between the Capitals and Coyotes is at 9 p.m. ET at Mullett Arena. It's the last stop on a five-game road swing for D.C.