The Kontinental Hockey League is just getting ready for the 2024/2025 season, with the regular season scheduled to start on September 3. But what do you do when it’s too early to change the calendar and you’ve been missing hockey for a long time? Of course, keep an eye on transfers and make predictions about the winners. But there’s someone to keep an eye on!
Unexpectedly for everyone, Evgeny Kuznetsov moved to SKA St. Petersburg. Perhaps there has not been a star of this magnitude in the KHL since the return of Pavel Datsyuk from the NHL (no offense to Nikita Gusev). The Detroit legend managed to win the Gagarin Cup in 2017 with the Neva CSKA team. Let’s see how the first season goes for the Washington legend.
There is no rival for Goldobin, but he will compete with Shipachev
Bookmakers have already made their predictions on Evgeniy Kuznetsov’s performance in the KHL regular season. According to quotes, the forward will have a hard time competing with Nikolai Goldobin and Reed Boucher for the title of the best sniper. The coefficient for both is 4.00, and for Kuzya – as much as 25.00! The difference is 21% probability.
Related materials
Will Russian offenders take bronze at the 2024 Olympics? Prediction for the match for third place
Last season, Goldobin scored 36 goals in 67 games for Spartak. Boucher scored 44 goals in 64 games for Avangard. For Kuznetsov, who played 73 games last NHL season and took just 12 shots during that stretch, this could be a significant challenge. But there is a chance to compete for the top scorer title.
The favourite of the list is Vadim Shipachev, who moved to Dynamo Minsk. In the last draw he scored 45 points and was 44 points behind Nikita Gusev, who won the race. Now the odds of success are 6.00. Evgeny Kuznetsov received a coefficient of 15.00 and entered the top five contenders. And here it is already true, because Shipachev himself does not look threatening.
Gagarin Cup in the debut season? Let’s do it!
Bookmakers believe that Evgeny Kuznetsov will be able to repeat Pavel Datsyuk’s success and lift the Gagarin Cup over his head. And in the debut season after his return. SKA is the favorite to win the trophy with odds of 5.50 to win. Next are three competitors with odds of 7.00: Avangard, Lokomotiv and CSKA.
Related materials
Guardiola dominates, Arteta is under pressure, Vardy remains. It’s a new season in the Premier League!
Given that last season the St. Petersburg team was on the verge of winning the regular season, it is safe to expect a return to the playoffs. And to fight in the knockout matches, the Northern Club is now stocking up on experienced players. In addition to Kuznetsov, they have already brought in Nikita Zaitsev from the NHL, and also signed Sergei Plotnikov and Mikhail Grigorenko from CSKA. So there are chances.
Predict and bet on Evgeny Kuznetsov’s performance with SKA in the 2024/2025 KHL season
It is logical to expect that Evgeny Kuznetsov will quickly adapt to Russia and quickly conquer the KHL. And there are several reasons for this judgment. Firstly, even on the third or fourth line of Carolina, playing seven minutes each, the forward scored six goals and gave seven assists. That is, his form and preparation are on par. We can safely say: NHL.
Secondly, Kuzya, of course, came to SKA as the main star in the top five, and not to polish the bench and share experience. In addition, he is only 32 years old – a great age for a hockey player. Do you all remember how spectacular Danis Zaripov was even at 40? Undoubtedly, the army will create comfortable conditions for a newcomer and the level of resistance will be lower than abroad.
Last season, the leading sniper of the Kontinental Hockey League, American Reed Boucher, scored 44 goals. The leading scorers of St. Petersburg, and there were at least three of them, scored scores of 18 or more. So it turns out that Kuznetsov is quite capable of scoring more than 21.5 goals. For more than 60 games.
Related materials
Spain is back in the final! Brilliant comeback at the Olympic Games with a goal in the last minutes
If there are any doubts about the Russian’s performance, it is his scoring ability that is to be considered. A total of over 65.5 points seems tempting. He can create something like 18 goals and 48 assists. Especially considering that the new partners also know how to score.
Motivation is also an important reason. After the most disastrous season in terms of performance in the NHL and moving to Russia, Evgeny Kuznetsov said that he wanted to show his family how he really knows how to play hockey. And how important it is for him to do this. A contract and a job are, of course, great, but this kind of motivation is much stronger.
Tender: Kuznetsov will score at least 22 goals in the KHL regular season for 1.85.
