Evgeny Kuznetsov was absent from the Capitals first post-break practice Monday due to what head coach Spencer Carbery would only call ‘a personal issue,’ saying there would be more news later in the day – and that update was a tough one for Kuzi and the team.
Monday afternoon, the NHL and NHLPA put out a joint statement saying that “Kuznetsov will be unavailable to his Club for an indefinite period while he receives care from the Player Assistance Program of the NHLPA and NHL,” and that “under the terms of the joint program, he will return to the Club when cleared for on-ice competition by the program administrators.”
Kuznetsov, 31, has had an up-and-down year in Carbery’s first at the helm, recording six goals and 11 assists in 43 games but also being benched in-game twice and sitting out one as a healthy scratch in early-December – a game Carbery spoke briefly and generically about in an interview with the Sports Junkies as a ‘mental reset’ that he thought Kuznetsov benefitted from.
The Russian had played in all 13 of the Caps’ games in January, with one goal and five assists, and centered a line with Max Pacioretty and Anthony Mantha in the game before the break.
The NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, established in 1996, has a mission to “support players and their families struggling with drug and alcohol dependency or mental health issues.”
This is Kuznetsov’s second stint in the program, as he previously voluntarily enrolled in the then-Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program after testing positive for cocaine at the 2019 IIHF World Championships.
Kuzi had spent at least part of his All-Star Break in Miami with former teammate Dmitry Orlov, as the pair posted photos of themselves together, and with their wives, on Instagram. The two played together in Russian junior teams from 2008-11 and were together here in DC from Kuznetsov’s debut in 2013-14 until Orlov was dealt to Boston at last season’s trade deadline, and have remained close.
The forward will be out indefinitely until cleared by the program, and the Capitals recalled forward Mike Sgarbossa from AHL Hershey to fill his roster spot. The 31-year-old had seven goals and 36 assists in 44 games for the Bears this year, and has 65 games of NHL experience with Colorado, Florida, Anaheim, and the Caps, 17 of those in Washington after joining the organization in 2018.