Washington Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov played over 21 minutes in the Caps’ 4-3 overtime victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Monday. But, it was the eight or so minutes in the third period that he missed that caused some concern.
Kuznetsov missed that spell of the game due to taking a high hit from Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider. The Russian playmaker would return later in the action causing questions about what exactly occurred while he was off the bench.
We now know via The Washington Post’s Samantha Pell that Kuzy was actually pulled by a concussion spotter and that’s why he was absent for almost half of the final period.
The hit in question came with 8:03 remaining in the third period with the score tied at three goals apiece.
Here's the Seider-Kuznetsov hit, in case it becomes important pic.twitter.com/mJBtpiweXE
— good tweet pete 🌮 (@peterhassett) December 20, 2022
Seider laid the boom on Kuznetsov at Detroit’s blueline. The young German defender came up a little high with his elbow/forearm toward Kuznetsov’s collarbone/neck region. The force of the hit caught an already off-balance Kuznetsov and slung him to the ice with force. The Russian forward got up nursing his right shoulder and appeared to slam the back of his head on the ice.
The latter portion of the play is likely what drew the attention of one of the NHL’s centralized spotter staff who had Kuznetsov pulled from the game.
Kuznetsov returned for a couple of shifts in overtime where his good buddy Dmitry Orlov eventually downed Detroit with a one-timer.
Kuzy told Pell on Wednesday that he is fine after being a full participant in practice. The 30-year-old pivot traveled with the team to Ottawa and is slated to resume his duties on the Caps’ second line between wingers Sonny Milano and Anthony Mantha.
In other non-hockey-related news, Kuznetsov is also releasing a craft beer called “Kuzy 777” on Friday through Herndon, VA’s Juicy Brewing Co.
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
