LATEST | Former Canuck criticizes the Canucks' staff for their handling of Andrei Kuzmenko

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Cooper Godin
December 21, 2023 (12:47)

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Vancouver Canucks forward Andrei Kuzmenko has found himself in the press box for a few games this season, most recently on Tuesday night against the Nashville Predators.

Being scratched when you're a player of Andrei Kuzmenko's calibre is not easy, especially after putting up 39 goals in his first National Hockey League season in 2022-23.

In a recent interview on Canucks Talk on Sportsnet radio, former Vancouver forward Jannik Hansen felt sympathetic for Andrei Kuzmenko and said that the coaching staff needs to give him a bit of leeway for him to make a mistake during a game and not worry about being benched.

"In and out of the lineup for a player like [Kuzmenko] is never easy. They need the confidence to be successful. They need to feel like they can make mistakes and not get benched." Hansen said.

So far this season, the 27-year-old has only six goals in 29 games, 11 assists and two penalty minutes and is a plus-two. There's no doubt that Kuzmenko needs to be better, and he knows he can be better than he's shown so far this season.

Over the past week, Andrei Kuzmenko's name has popped up in the rumour mill. Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported that the Washington Capitals are among the teams most interested in acquiring the Yakutsk, Russia, native.

At the time of writing this, it's unclear whether or not Andrei Kuzmenko will suit up tonight as the Canucks wrap up their four-game road trip against the Dallas Stars, which is set to get underway at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET.