Evgeny Kuznetsov suspended for making crude gesture towards ex-Canucks player in KHL
Two former NHLers have endured strange seasons in the KHL, but things just got even weirder.
Former Stanley Cup champion Evgeny Kuznetsov hasn’t avoided drama this season, after he had a falling out with his head coach, Andrei Razin of Magnitogorsk Metallurg.
During one October game, he mysteriously disappeared from the bench and was later seen watching the game in street clothes. Kuznetsov was later waived by the team in January, and he’s had more success with his current club, Ufa Salavat Yulayev.
It looks like Kuznetsov was leaving drama in the dust, until the KHL playoffs started.
The 33-year-old was recently suspended for one game in the KHL after making an obscene gesture at an opposing player.
Ironically, that opposing player was his ex-teammate from the Washington Capitals, Daniel Sprong.
The incident happened pre-game, before Ufa Salavat Yulayev battled Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg in Game 2 of their first-round series.
Kuznetsov appeared to make a sexual gesture towards some of the opposing players, with his ex-teammate Sprong apparently skating nearby.
Warning: the clip below contains a sexual gesture.
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“A decision was made to impose a penalty on Salavat Yulaev forward Evgeny Kuznetsov under paragraph 1.30 of Article 29 of the KHL Disciplinary Regulations (Uses any obscene, abusive or offensive gesture towards a referee or any person), disqualify him for one match and subject him to a monetary fine,” the KHL reported.
After the incident, Kuznetsov’s head coach, Viktor Kozlov, downplayed the incident.
“Two friends just met and chatted,” Kozlov said via Match TV after the game, referring to the communication between Kuznetsov and Sprong.
While the suspension is another bizarre footnote in Kuznetzov’s season, it’s also been an eventful campaign for his ex-teammate Sprong.
The former Vancouver Canucks winger had an impressive 31 points in 29 games for CKSA Moscow. Despite leading his team in scoring at the time, he sat as a healthy scratch for about a month before being traded to Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg.
Much like Kuznetsov, the change appeared to be positive for Sprong. He continued to produce while playing alongside former Canucks Reid Boucher and captain Nikita Tryamkin.
Kuznetsov and Sprong were both teammates with the Washington Capitals from 2020 to 2022.