Washington Capitals: Evgeny Kuznetsov will bounce back in 2019

Washington Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov is looking for a bounce back season in 2019-20.

When the Washington Capitals inked Evgeny Kuznetsov to a eight-year, $64-million extension two summers ago, General Manager Brian MacLellan believed he could evolve into a Russian superstar like Alex Ovechkin.

In the first year of that deal where Kuznetsov will make $7.8 million annually, he scored 27 goals and added 56 assists for 83 points. Okay, so far so good.

In the playoffs, Kuznetsov came up clutch time after time. Leading the Capitals with 32 points, Kuznetsov created offense on the top line next to Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson. The playmaker dazzled with no-look passes, breakaways, and one of the biggest goals in Capitals history to send them to the third round.

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It seemed like he hadn’t skipped a beat when the 2018-19 season began. Kuznetsov recorded 24 points (7 goals, 17 assists) in his first 20 games though six of those seven goals came on the power play.

Kuznetsov turned it on in spurts but a midseason concussion injury set him back. His offensive numbers dipped in large part to taking on a more defensive game. But as is the case, it seems like we as fans are in for a roller coaster every time we watch Kuznetsov step on the ice.

We simply don’t know what we’ll get. Kuznetsov did have a solid 2018-19 season of scoring 21 goals and adding 51 assists but it seemed like some games he was simply a “passenger” a term good old former head coach Barry Trotz would use to describe a player who seemed invisible out on the ice.

Kuznetsov went 17 games without a goal from early-December till about mid-January. After the All-Star break, he had a stretch of 14 points in 12 games from Feb. 7 to March 1 with seven goals and assists each.

Kuznetsov had a career-low Corsi-For percentage of 48.3% (the 2013-14 season was lower but he played in just 17 games, via Hockey Reference).

There’s no doubt that an 82-game season produces ups-and-downs, huge wins or games that could’ve been won. But I think Kuznetsov will have a bounce back year in 2019-20.

One goal Kuznetsov should shoot for is a 90-point season. How he gets there? Kuznetsov needs to score more at five-on-five even strength. This is an obvious one, but shooting the puck more will get the job done.

Whether Kuznetsov is on a top line with Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson or on the second line with Jakub Vrana and T.J. Oshie, Kuzy will continue to create the plays that make his teammates better.