Andrei Alexandrovich Kuzmenko (; born February 4, 1996) is a Russian professional ice hockey player who is a winger for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL).
Playing career Kuzmenko made his Kontinental Hockey League debut playing with CSKA Moscow during the 2014–15 KHL season. In the 2017–18 season, Kuzmenko broke out as a 21-year-old establishing career bests of 13 goals and 25 points in 45 games with CSKA. In helping the club reach the Gagarin Cup finals, he produced four goals in 15 games.
Approaching the 2018–19 season, Kuzmenko was traded by CSKA to fellow contending club, SKA Saint Petersburg in exchange for Sergey Kalinin on August 8, 2018. In his fourth year with SKA in the 2021–22 season, Kuzmenko increased his offensive output to over a point-per-game leading SKA in scoring with 20 goals and 33 assists for 53 points in 45 regular season games. He led the team in the postseason, continuing his scoring pace with 14 points in as many contests before losing in the Conference finals to eventual champions and former club, CSKA Moscow.
As an undrafted free agent and having gained NHL interest, on June 20, 2022, Kuzmenko was signed to a one-year, entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks. He made his NHL debut on October 13, where he scored a goal in the eventual 5–3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. He continued to produce steadily through the early parts of the season; on November 3, he recorded his first career NHL hat-trick in a four-point game, as the Canucks took an 8–5 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. By this time, Kuzmenko had tallied six goals and four assists for 10 points through 11 games. Establishing himself as one of the Canucks top offensive contributors, Kuzmenko as an impending free agent opted to remain with the Canucks in signing a two-year, $11 million contract extension on January 26, 2023.
On January 31, 2024, in the midst of a struggling sophomore season that saw him get healthy scratched multiple times, Kuzmenko, along with multiple draft picks and prospects, was traded to the Calgary Flames in exchange for forward Elias Lindholm.
On January 30, 2025, Kuzmenko, along with Jakob Pelletier and two draft picks, was traded by the Flames to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost. On March 7, after playing seven games with the Flyers, Kuzmenko was traded to the Los Angeles Kings along with a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NHL entry draft in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2027 NHL entry draft, with 50% of his salary being retained by the Flyers.
On July 1, 2026, Kuzmenko signed a one-year, $5 million contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Personal life Kuzmenko was born to Alexander Kuzmenko, an ice hockey coach who was killed in a bear attack during a fishing trip along the Krasnaya River in Siberia in 2026.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2012–13 Krasnaya Armiya MHL 49 5 7 12 8 — — — — — 2013–14 Krasnaya Armiya MHL 36 13 18 31 2 18 3 3 6 0 2014–15 Krasnaya Armiya MHL 37 20 21 41 20 13 4 10 14 0 2014–15 CSKA Moscow KHL 12 1 2 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 2015–16 CSKA Moscow KHL 15 1 2 3 0 — — — — — 2015–16 Zvezda Chekhov VHL 17 2 4 6 2 — — — — — 2015–16 Krasnaya Armiya MHL 5 1 3 4 0 7 8 1 9 2 2016–17 CSKA Moscow KHL 34 6 9 15 6 1 0 0 0 2 2016–17 Zvezda Chekhov VHL 23 11 17 28 4 5 1 3 4 0 2016–17 Krasnaya Armiya MHL 3 3 0 3 0 13 11 13 24 6 2017–18 CSKA Moscow KHL 45 13 12 25 12 15 4 1 5 6 2017–18 Zvezda Chekhov VHL 7 5 5 10 2 — — — — — 2018–19 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 58 12 19 31 20 9 0 0 0 4 2019–20 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 49 14 19 33 6 4 3 1 4 0 2020–21 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 57 18 19 37 14 15 4 2 6 4 2021–22 SKA Saint Petersburg KHL 45 20 33 53 10 16 7 7 14 12 2022–23 Vancouver Canucks NHL 81 39 35 74 8 — — — — — 2023–24 Vancouver Canucks NHL 43 8 13 21 6 — — — — — 2023–24 Calgary Flames NHL 29 14 11 25 6 — — — — — 2024–25 Calgary Flames NHL 37 4 11 15 12 — — — — — 2024–25 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 7 2 3 5 0 — — — — — 2024–25 Los Angeles Kings NHL 22 5 12 17 2 6 3 3 6 4 2025–26 Los Angeles Kings NHL 52 13 12 25 16 1 0 0 0 0KHL totals 315 85 115 200 68 61 18 11 29 28NHL totals 271 85 97 182 50 7 3 3 6 4
International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2013 Russia U17 6 1 0 1 2 2016 Russia WJC 7 0 0 0 2 2021 ROC WC 5th 2 1 1 2 0Junior totals 13 1 0 1 4Senior totals 2 1 1 2 0
References
External links