Report: Ex-Capitals Center Kuznetsov's New KHL Deal With SKA Won't Be Signed 'In The Near Future,' What Are Next Steps?

Ex-Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes center Evgeny Kuznetsov has cut all ties in the NHL as he reportedly eyes a return to Russia, but he'll have to wait to officially put pen to paper on a KHL deal, per a new report.

Match.TV reports that Kuznetsov will not be signing with SKA St. Petersburg "in the near future" with SKA needing to make some moves in order to bring him on board.

"It won't happen in the near future, because to begin with, SKA needs to conduct a number of transactions to clear the space and get under the salary cap ceiling. If it's exceeded, Kuznetsov's contract simply cannot be registered in the KHL," a source told Match.TV on Friday.

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Championat first reported that Kuznetsov would be signing a four-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg after terminating his NHL contract with Carolina. He did that on Thursday after clearing unconditional waivers, walking away from $6 million and the final year of the eight-year contract he'd signed with the Capitals in 2017.

It looks like he will remain an unrestricted free agent until there is enough cap space to accommodate his contract. There could also be other KHL teams that are interested in his services, including his hometown Chelyabinsk Traktor.

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With Kuznetsov leaving the NHL, his combined cap hit of $7.8 million completely comes off the books for both Washington and Carolina, who are splitting his salary. The Capitals had retained 50 percent of his salary after trading him to the Hurricanes at the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline for a 2025 third-round pick.

Kuznetsov appeared in 743 games over the span of 11 years in the NHL, picking up 575 points. His 31-point performance in the 2018 postseason helped lead D.C. to its first-ever Stanley Cup title.