Andrei Kuzmenko will suit up for the first time as a member of the Calgary Flames on Tuesday in Boston, but what can head coach Ryan Huska and company expect from their new arrival? On Monday (Feb. 5), he practiced with Jonathan Huberdeau and Yegor Sharangovich, which should comprise the No. 1 unit against the Bruins.
While Kuzmenko barely speaks a lick of English, Huberdeau is excited about what he’s seen thus far from his new teammate. His lack of English won’t be an issue for Sharangovich, whose primary language is Belarusian. It’s way too early to know how the 28-year-old Russian will adapt to life in Calgary, but his track record in the NHL, despite a brief season-and-a-half sample size, is promising. Hopefully, he has the magic touch and can restore the confidence of Calgary’s most disappointing player.
The undrafted left winger took to life in the NHL like a math professor to calculus. In 2022-23, his first season in the NHL, Kuzmenko tied Elias Pettersson for first on the Vancouver Canucks with 39 goals. He has seen a marked drop-off in the current campaign, scoring 21 points in 43 games. Kuzmenko’s regression was expected based on his unsustainable 27.3% shooting percentage and goals above expected (15) from his rookie season.
Kuzmenko’s First Two NHL Seasons a Mixed Bag
Kuzmenko exceeded all expectations in his rookie season, notching 74 points in 81 games (39 goals, 35 assists). Had he been under the 26-year-old threshold required to be eligible for the Calder Trophy, he would have been a shoo-in for the personal accolade. His .91 points-per-game return was the team’s sixth-best and he scored 14 power-play goals to lead the Canucks, unequivocally the highlight of his rookie campaign.
The Russian’s 39 goals came from just 143 shots on goal, equating to an inflated 27.3% shooting percentage, easily the NHL’s most potent return. The only player close with a comparable number of games played was the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Brayden Point, who finished the campaign with 51 goals on a shooting percentage of 21.7. Kuzmenko’s 15 goals above expected, the NHL’s seventh highest, directly correlates to his disproportionately high shooting percentage.
Those numbers are all but impossible to maintain, hence his significant decline in overall production. He is notching .49 points per game thus far in his sophomore season, a more realistic and sustainable return. His Corsi for percentage has remained consistent across both seasons, finishing fourth last season (52.9%) and sitting in fifth (53.8%) before departing the Canucks last week. Those numbers, along with last season’s power-play marksmanship, are especially promising as they signify his ability to control possession.
A Look at Kuzmenko’s Time in the KHL
Before making it in the NHL, Kuzmenko played in eight Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) seasons. However, in his first three seasons, he only played 12, 15, and 34 games. On an aside, a KHL season usually consists of 68 games. He played most of the last five seasons, four with St. Petersburg SKA and one with CSKA Moscow.
In 315 games, Kuzmenko scored 85 goals and 115 assists for 200 points, a .63 points-per-game return. That’s down from his .77 points-per-game clip in the NHL, albeit over a much larger sample size. He notched 53 points (20 goals, 33 assists) in 45 games during the 2021-22 campaign, his last and most prolific in the KHL. He was also a solid plus-20 or above in three of five seasons.
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With a quick release and a powerful right-handed shot, Kuzmenko can be a formidable asset for the Flames, particularly on a power play that ranks 29th in the league and has been a bone of contention for anyone affiliated with the hockey club. Flames fans should temper their expectations where the newbie is concerned. He was overly efficient in his rookie season and is slightly underperforming in the current campaign. If a modicum of chemistry develops with his new linemates, he should achieve the sort of production he did in his homeland before debuting with the Canucks.
