So About Evgeny Kuznetsov

No one has any idea what is going on with this kid. Is he staying in Russia? Is he coming to the US? Are the reports true? Honestly, who knows at this point.

But I hate all the backlash that Kuzco (my nickname for him) has gotten from what could very well just be a rumor. Sure he made it seem like he wanted to come to the NHL. Did he string us along? Yes. But he has to make this decision on his own. 

He's only 19. As hard as that is to believe, especially with the way he handles himself and the national attention he has gotten. He has a wife. He is having the time of his life in the KHL. Looking at all of this it kind of makes leaving for the NHL a little harder for him. 

If Kuzco left for the NHL, we could only give him the rookie minimum. Back in Russia, he is looking at making millions a year. The teams over there really want him and want to pay him the big bucks. Maybe in the long run he'd make more if he came over here, but why wait? The teams looking at him want to sign him long term, maybe ten years. That's security I'm sure he wants and has stated he wanted from the Capitals.

I've seen a lot of "this is why most teams don't take chances with the Russian players". If teams aren't willing to draft players from Russia, they are missing out on a lot of talent that could make their team better. Not every single player is going to do this. In fact, I would say that most of the younger Russian players want to come to the United States and play (and you can thank huge starts Alex Ovechkin, Malkin, and Datsyuk for that). General managers know what they are doing when they draft players from there. Are they taking a risk? Maybe. But should that stop them from doing it? No. That is borderline racism.

In the end Kuzco was going to make his own decision. Dmitry Orlov said that he had talked to him and he was asking him questions about the Caps but Dima told him that in the end he was going to have to make his own decision. And if his decision is that he wants to stay in the KHL we have to respect that. The NHL is going to miss out on a lot of talent if he stays in Russia and which is going to be a shame. 

But we still have no idea what is going on because the Caps have not made a statement about it. Kuzco still has a lot of time to change his mind.