Evgeny Kuznetsov got a new view of the ice on Saturday night. Moving out of his longtime spot at center, Kuznetsov instead played right wing against the Nashville Predators, joining Alex Ovechkin and Dylan Strome on the Capitals’ top line.
Though Kuznetsov has rarely played on the wing in recent memory, head coach Spencer Carbery hoped the move could bring a much-needed spark of offense to both Kuznetsov individually and the trio as a whole.
“Just trying to find something offensively five-on-five for O, Strome, him,” Carbery explained postgame. “So getting him with some better players–or I shouldn’t say better players, but more offensive-minded players–and seeing if it worked.”
Kuznetsov told reporters after the game that he enjoyed the change in position.
“It was awesome,” he said. “It’s a different feeling, absolutely. You see hockey absolutely from different angle. And it was fun for me.”
Kuznetsov has seldom played on the wing since his rookie season in Washington, though he did so extensively during his time in the KHL. The veteran Russian forward has spent much of the 2023-24 campaign moving up and down the Capitals’ lineup, playing on each of the team’s top three lines and even spending a game as a healthy scratch earlier this month.
The Capitals’ last attempt at an Ovechkin-Kuznetsov line fared poorly with Kuznetsov at center before Carbery separated the duo earlier in December. With this new look, however, Carbery was willing to give the pair another shot.
The experiment had mixed results. At five-on-five, the Ovechkin-Strome-Kuznetsov trio broke even in scoring chances (7-7) and recorded three high-danger opportunities while allowing just one, per Natural Stat Trick.
Still, though Ovechkin saw his own offensive boost in the game, the line failed to score as a unit. Ovechkin tallied his second-period goal right after the end of a power play, and his disallowed tally in the final minute came on a delayed penalty call where he had jumped over the boards as the extra sixth skater.
Given that, Carbery offered a middling review of the line’s performance.
“Do I think it worked tonight? Did I think that line was great? I thought they were okay,” he said. “They ended a lot of shifts in the defensive zone. Is it ideal? Will he stay there? Probably not. I thought it was a tough night for Stromer overall. So that probably plays into the effect that it has on O and Kuz.”
After trade rumors failed to materialize over the summer, Kuznetsov has struggled offensively this season with just 11 points (5g, 6a) in 30 games played. His 0.37 points per game pace ranks worst of any season in his career, while the Capitals as a whole sit second-last in the NHL in total goals per game.
Carbery may not plan to repeat Saturday’s experiment, but he is still searching for ways to turn Kuznetsov’s season around.
“Yeah, we’re looking for different ways to get Kuz potentially with some more offensive-minded players to unlock something there five-on-five scoring-wise,” he said.
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
