Traktor’s director Vladimir Krechin. (Photo credit: Traktor’s official website)
For a few weeks now the saga of Evgeny Kuznetsov has been dominating the hearts and minds of Caps fans. The question being, where will Kuzya be playing next year? Is he going to join the NHL team that selected him in the first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft? Will he stay true to his home town and remain a Traktorist for another season? Or will he prefer the greener pastures of another KHL club, perhaps a powerhouse like SKA St. Petersburg or even one of Traktor’s main KHL rivals like Salavat Yulaev Ufa?
The latest development in this story came in an interview Kuznetsov gave earlier this week to the host of KHL-TV’s “The Icing Show,” Igor Larin. Kuznetsov purportedly stated his intention to remain in the KHL, but not necessarily with his current club. KHL-TV has not yet made video of this interview available online.
Many Russian hockey analysts and former players have given their opinions on his decision since then, yet Kuznetsov’s team, Traktor Cheylabinsk, has stayed silent. Until now.
Traktor’s Director Vladimir Krechin spoke to Sport-Express’s Yuriy Golyshak after his team’s 2-1 victory over Ak Bars on Friday. My translation of their interview is below.
