Vancouver Canucks scratch Andrei Kuzmenko, again, against Nashville Predators

A Vancouver Canuck who was supposed to be a promising prospect is finding himself in the press box once again.

After morning skate on Tuesday, in the lead-up to the Canucks’ matchup with the Nashville Predators, head coach Rick Tocchet announced that forward Andrei Kuzmenko is going to be a healthy scratch, again.

Tocchet explained to the media, “Just trying to win a game tonight and I felt this was the best lineup. We’ll re-evaluate (for) the Dallas game.”

This is the fourth time that Kuzmenko has been a healthy scratch this season. He was held out of the lineup for three straight games at the end of November.

Kuzmenko burst onto the scene in his rookie campaign in Vancouver last season, finishing tied with Elias Petterson for the team lead in goals (39). However, the Russian-born winner has fallen out of favor in 2023-24. His lackluster effort without the puck has led to Tocchet pushing him further down the lineup, with the former NHL grinder hoping a fourth-line role would give Kuzmenko a neccessary kick in the pants.

Obviously that has not happened yet. For Tuesday night, Phil Di Giuseppe and Sam Lafferty are on the wings of a fourth line centered by Nils Aman.

Through 29 games this season, Kuzmenko has six goals and 11 assists, finding the back of the net in consecutive games earlier in December, helping Vancouver beat the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers on Dec. 12 and 14, respectively.

The former SKA St. Petersburg star is in the first year of a two-year contract worth $11 million, a hefty pay raise from his $1.8 million rookie deal.

All of this drama comes despite the fact that the Canucks (21-9-2), have the second-best record in the NHL. They sit just three points behind their Pacific Division rivals, the Vegas Golden Knights.