Evgeny Kuznetsov is back in Russia and recently returned to the hometown arena where he got married. Wednesday, Kuznetsov was in the house for Traktor Chelyabinsk’s 4-1 victory Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod.
During his appearance at Valery Belousov Traktor Arena, the team presented Kuznetsov with a new Traktor jersey — the franchise recently updated its logo and branding — and had some fun with the photo on social media.
“So, the game sweater is already there #OnlyBlackWhite, right @kuzy092?” Traktor wrote, insinuating Kuzy’s return to the KHL.
“Well well well,” the KHL added.
Well well well pic.twitter.com/WC8S6OXEzY
— KHL (@khl_eng) October 29, 2020
Kuznetsov, whose jersey was raised to the rafters in 2012, was also honored by fans during the game, receiving an ovation as he was showed on the jumbotron.
The day before, Alex Ovechkin made a special visit to Dynamo Moscow, his former KHL team where he also serves as an advistor.
Kuzy grew up in Chelyabinsk and began playing hockey at a young age. When he became 12, Kuznetsov was considered the best player at his age in Russia.
“In Chelyabinsk, hockey’s more than life for people here,” Kuznetsov said. “When I was young, my mom bring me to the hockey school. Our apartment was literally one minute away from the rink My mom chooses hockey because it’s the closest. I grow up in the rink. I was there for like almost 15, 14 hours a day. I spend more time at the rink than I spend in the bed. Every security guy, the people that take care of the rink, they all know me.”
Kuzy would go on to play five years for Traktor (2009-2014) in the KHL. He was widely considered the best player outside of the NHL before making his Capitals debut on March 10, 2014.
Headline photo courtesy of @hc_traktor
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