Kuznetsov a No-Go for Next Season

Evgeny Kuznetsov is the Capitals' best prospect.

Earlier this month, a report by Santiago Lage, a KHL beat writer, confirmed what Capitals fans had been fearing for a while now: that star Russain prospect Evgeny Kuznetsov will be playing in his homeland next season.  The decision, in his words, is "irrevocable," and confirms that Kuznetsov will honor the full tenure of his contract with his KHL team, Traktor Chelyabinsk.  Until this report surfaced, there had been some cautious optimism (or maybe just wishful thinking) that the uber talented forward would pull an Evgeni Malkin and try to leave before his contract was up.  This new is not really a surprise, as he was not expected to leave anyway; this merely affirms Caps fans are going to have to wait another year before they see him in action.
Kuznetsov, 18, had an absolutely ridiculous season in the Kontinental Hockey League for someone his age, totaling 17 goals and 32 points in 44 games. He is currently playing in the Russian Minor Hockey League, which is where many young Russian players go after their KHL season is over to stay fresh (Traktor failed to make the playoffs).  Kuznetsov was the Capitals' first round choice, 26th overall, in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and is ranked as their best prospect who has not yet played with the Capitals by NHL Central Scouting (the other two are Mathieu Perreault and Marcus Johansson).  For my full prospect breakdown of Kuznetsov, click here.