Predicting where Evgeny Kuznetsov will be traded to

We are now in the dog days of summer. Happy August Washington Capitals fans. This is the last month without hockey. And we probably won’t see an Evgeny Kuznetsov trade unless Brian MacLellan wants to ruin our end of summer vacations.

But if the Caps do indeed decide to trade Evgeny Kuznetsov I could see a deal getting done with the Calgary Flames. The question is when. It could come just before training camp or well into the season.

What will be really interesting is say Kuznetsov is still around in the Caps training camp roster. What if the Caps stumble out of the gate and need to do another sell off? Kuznetsov would need to go then especially if he has a good year which will in turn increase his trade value.

The return for Kuznetsov should be someone like Elias Lindholm. He had 22 goals and 42 assists for 64 points. He had 42 goals the previous season. He is 28 years old and has played for the Flames for the last five seasons. He began his first five years with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Kuznetsov had 10 last goals than Lindholm last season with 12 goals and 43 assists for 55 points. This comes after a previous season of scoring 24 goals and thinking that he rebounded.

But now that it’s August 1 I think the Caps should stick with Kuznetsov and Anthony Mantha and give each player one more chance. Both have a chance to rebound in their careers playing under a new and promising progressive coach and system in Spencer Carbery.

The question is if the Caps wait too long to shop Kuznetsov, would the Calgary Flames still be a potential suitor and if so would Elias Lindholm will be available? Your guess is as good as ours and we’ll find out soon or far enough from now.