Canucks Land Kuzmenko

PHOTO BY PAVEL GOLOVKIN /AP

The highly coveted KHL player has finally chose a destination and will be singing in Vancouver. The Canucks brass met with Kuzmenko last week and after the meeting it sounded like Kuzmenko had limited his final decision to four teams. Finally on Monday the Canucks came out the winner.

The Canucks didn’t take last week’s meeting lightly as head coach Bruce Boudreau drove over 6.5 hours to meet with the player and his reps in Anne Arbor Michigan. General Manager Patrick Alvin also drove over four hours for this meeting. That kind of dedication impressed Kuzmenko and obviously the right things were said in the meeting to persuade him to choose their team.

Boudreau has a way of getting the most out of young offensive talent. Although the incoming rookie is 26 years old he’s still relatively young and certainly fresh to the league.

With all the teams that were interested and all the promises that were flying around, I think it’s safe to assume that Kuzmenko will get his fair shot at top-6 minutes and second power-play unit time to start out. If it’s a fit, these are two areas the Canucks desperately need improvement from in order to compete.

Kuzmenko was never drafted and has slowly found his game year by year, improving every season in the KHL, improving on his goal and point totals every single season leading up to this year’s 20 goals and 53 points in just 45 games for SKA St. Petersburg. He also added 14 points in 14 playoff games.

The team will work out the contract details with the 26 year old Russian in the coming days.

Stanley Cup Aspirations Cue’ the Duck Boats Pod

The boys are back after a long break but have plenty to talk about as the playoffs are in full swing. We go series by series, looking at how teams have fared so far and who will come out on top. Thanks for listening! Please rate and review our show on your favorite listening platform. Check out our partner's website at www.insidetherink.com for all your latest hockey news.
  1. Stanley Cup Aspirations
  2. The Final Countdown
  3. Here Come the Playoffs
  4. Home Stretch
  5. Kevy Cooks

Discover more from Inside The Rink

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Leave a Reply

Could Sebastian Cossa Be On the Move?

Could Sebastian Cossa Be On the Move?

The 2025-26 NHL season is approaching, but with the offseason still going rumors circulate and now Sebastian Cossa’s name has popped up.

Read More

2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup: Day Two Recap

Day Two of the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup delivered high-intensity hockey across both host cities—Trenčín, Slovakia, and Brno, Czechia From USA’s penalty trouble to Slovakia’s nail-biting late winner, fans were treated to momentum swings, power-play fireworks, and plenty of drama. Game 1: Sweden 5 – 3 USA Pavol Demitra Ice Stadium – Trenčín, Slovakia First […]

Read More
Steve Yzerman, General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings

Best Draft Picks in Detroit Red Wings History

The Detroit Red Wings shocked the NHL and hockey world when they selected defenseman Moritz Seider with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Leading up to this draft, Seider was thought to be a mid-first-round pick. Seider would continue to shock the NHL by winning the Calder Trophy as the rookie […]

Read More