He will make $4 million or so staying in true KHL, no? Versus $1 million entry level salary here. Seems to me that money is a factor. Passion? How is the KHL game more passionate? Family, perhaps. Does his family live in Traktor''s home town? Do they travel with him on the road?
I also don't see why the NHL would hurt his Olympic chances. To me this is about money, which is if course his right. But it opens him up to questions.
Guys like this who got no F* clue whats going on....talking about passion and shyte....
Kuznetsov is married, he is a hero in his town, family surely put a lot of pressure on him to stay. His wife speaks no english, imagine her all day in an apartment in DC probably watching russian tv from a satellite dish Kuzya is gonna get for her.....
Shame on all this Caps fans coming here talking shyte...hes not physically ready yet, wonderin if he'd make the team had he come last season etc etc.....
The Caps barely made the playoffs, Kuzya would make the team no questions asked.
I really wanted him in DC next season, i didnt see this coming, from his last interview few weeks back looked like hes coming to NA 100%. It surprised me as much as everybody else but when you look at it from a different side you see his choice is a good as coming to NA would have been. He'd be only 1-2 years diff from Ovy/Malkin when they moved. Not a big deal.
So in 2 years time if he doesnt come then you all go yapping again.
Guys like this who got no F* clue whats going on....talking about passion and shyte....
Kuznetsov is married, he is a hero in his town, family surely put a lot of pressure on him to stay. His wife speaks no english, imagine her all day in an apartment in DC probably watching russian tv from a satellite dish Kuzya is gonna get for her.....
Shame on all this Caps fans coming here talking shyte...hes not physically ready yet, wonderin if he'd make the team had he come last season etc etc.....
The Caps barely made the playoffs, Kuzya would make the team no questions asked.
I really wanted him in DC next season, i didnt see this coming, from his last interview few weeks back looked like hes coming to NA 100%. It surprised me as much as everybody else but when you look at it from a different side you see his choice is a good as coming to NA would have been. He'd be only 1-2 years diff from Ovy/Malkin when they moved. Not a big deal.
So in 2 years time if he doesnt come then you all go yapping again.
Irony.
His wife wouldn't be at home all day in her apartment watching Russian TV. More likely, she'd spend a lot of time with Ovechkin's and Semin's families, or with some of the numerous Russian speakers/immigrants in and around the city.
I don't blame the kid for his decision. I'm sure he's got pressure from multiple sources all around him to stay in Russia--most notably from the Olympic powers-that-be. But it's a bad decision for his hockey career.
I mean if anything he's wasting what should be Ovechkin's prime years. That's the real pisser. I'm fairly certain he understands that he would have a great shot at playing with and hopefully bringing back some life to Ovechkin's game. I'm more worried about him learning to play good sound hockey in the KHL and being able to adjust to the North American game. But, the guy is right about one thing, he's young and he can still come over in a few years. Sucks that he turned his back on the Caps, but they'll live.
I also think the stuff about his wife being a shut in barred up in an apartment is crap...I sit in the players families section. The Euro families are there every game watching and hanging out being social.
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George McPhee....The Teflon GM. 15 years of failure and counting....
6 - Number of playoff series the Capitals have won since George McPhee took over as General Manager in 1997 (which makes him the third-longest-tenured GM in the League), three of which came in McPhee's first season on the job.
If Kuz doesn't come here, it is squarely on George's shoulders for taking him in the first place. I already speculated in this thread if defensive hockey scared him away - which again, no one here knows who spearheaded the move to d first hockey anyways. Dale wasn't a trapper.
Dale has his faults every human does. Aucoin on the PP. There. I criticized him. Drop it.
Look at how many players are drafted from the USHL or QMJHL, and then the KHL.
Look at how many players play in the NHL from the USHL/Q and then from the KHL.
I don't think that's a valid argument as there are much more North American players in CHL/USHL, and NA players make vast majority of the guys drafted.
Do you know how many Russian players left for Canadian junor leagues? Hundreds, literally. Only a few made the NHL. Also, none of impact Russian players played in the CHL (Radulov being an exception, but he's an exception in many ways, ha!). I don't think it characterizes the NA way of development for Russian kids well.
I also think that it's easier to make a transition to another country at ~20 years than at 16, especially if a player didn't study English well in school There was a question about Kuznetsov's wife - why doubt an opinion that she can learn some English in 2 years? She's not a professional hockey player, whose game says more than his words.
There are players with exceptional combination of talent and mindset (like Ovechkin or Yakupov) that will succeed in any league. But they are rare, and with the story of Russian players usually failing in Canadian leagues I wouldn't say that CHL is a better path. AHL? Maybe for a year or two at max, at least that is a professional league and a good school of life.
Of course there are situations that you really have little choice (if you're coming from junior system of a stacked team contending for Gagarin Cup), but at 16 it's usually too early to judge.
Quote:
Icetime? KHL teams are there to win games, not develop kids for the NHL.
Galievs development was improved due to him playing big minutes in crucial situations. If he could get those same minutes in the KHL then that would be fine to, but he couldn't.
But at 16 Kuznetsov couldn't either. Big ice time is earned, not gifted, and in the KHL it's earned against better competition.
Ice size, culture and playing style are very important factors, but I still think that a player and a person is better developed at elder age. Not that all young guys must stay in the KHL, but going away too early is worse than staying for some time.
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Sounds like he may at least start the WCs on a line with Datsyuk. No better person/player for this kid to be around.
Bilyaletdinov even said that he matches Kuzya with Datsyuk or Malkin to show him what it takes as a player and a person to be an NHL superstar
If Kuz doesn't come here, it is squarely on George's shoulders for taking him in the first place. I already speculated in this thread if defensive hockey scared him away - which again, no one here knows who spearheaded the move to d first hockey anyways. Dale wasn't a trapper.
Dale has his faults every human does. Aucoin on the PP. There. I criticized him. Drop it.
Personally I think it is the NHL/NHLPA's fault for not having a CBA in place for next season as well as the Olympic site selection committee's for picking Sochi, which makes these Olympics more important to Russian players than usual. The confluence of events just made it very difficult to lure Kuznetsov over at this time.
If it forces McPhee to make a move that really addresses the top-6, this could actually turn out to be a very good thing. I was excited to see Kuznetsov, but I'm not upset about the outcome. Of course, McPhee probably won't truly address anything.
i am looking at the quote. one bad play and you lose your spot. that sounds like who?
is there a russian that had a bad game who you want to see play who has not come close to playing since the bad game?
as this roster management is that of the new guy i can put 2 and 2 together and get 4.
yes, its mcphee's fault because he is the gut that hired the new guy. happy?
i really dont care if they win. if they won the cup, i wouldnt care if kuznetsov ever came over.
There was a question about Kuznetsov's wife - why doubt an opinion that she can learn some English in 2 years? She's not a professional hockey player, whose game says more than his words. 
