Report: Star player admits he’s been too busy partying to train this summer

Imagine you’re Washington Capitals star forward Evgeny Kuznetsov for a moment. You’ve just turned down a $10 million a year offer to play in the KHL and signed an eight-year, $62.4 million contract just weeks ago. You’re back home in Russia for the offseason and the living is easy. The prodigal son has returned home and it seems he’s in no rush to get back to the gym or hit the ice.

According to KHL insider Slava Malamud, Kuznetsov has admitted that his offseason training isn’t exactly the most rigorous:

Yikes. How’s that make you feel Caps fans? That’s $7.8 million in your team’s cap hit for the next eight seasons. 

While we suspect that Kuznetsov will get his act together and come into the 2017-18 season ready to play and help get his team over the hump, his comments do bring into question his commitment to the team and to himself. Then again, things have a way of getting misinterpreted when translated from their original source, so maybe we’ll cut him some slack in this case.

One thing’s for sure, if Kuznetsov at all struggles next season or if he starts off the campaign with a slump, his words will come back to haunt him.