The Vancouver Canucks forward Andrei Kuzmenko signed a two-year contract extension, the team confirmed on Thursday. The contract extension has an average value of $5.5 million.
Ranking second in the team in both goals and power-play goals (nine), Kuzmenko leads all first-year NHL players in almost every offensive category, including goals, assists, points, and points per game. He also ranks second in the team for his 24.7% shooting rate; a figure that sees him rank third overall in the NHL in that category.
Kuzmenko spent the first eight years of his professional career in the Kontinental Hockey League, where he played for CSKA Moscow and SKA St. Petersburg. There, he scored 200 points (85 goals and 115 assists) in 315 regular season games. Last season, the Yakutsk native attained career-high figures with his 20 goals, 33 assists, and 53 points overall.
At 26 years old, Kuzmenko has made 37 international appearances for the Russian national team, during which time he has scored 10 goals and grabbed six assists. He joined Vancouver on July 13 last year, when he signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the team.
