Kuznetsov is the fourth player this season announced to be in the joint NHL/NHLPA program after Columbus’ Patrik Laine and Colorado’s Samuel Girard and Valeri Nichushkin.
Girard, who opened up about anxiety and depression leading to alcohol abuse, was away from hockey for about a month. He returned to practice in November and played his first game on New Year’s Eve.
Kuznetsov in 2019 was suspended without pay for three regular-season games by the NHL for “inappropriate conduct,” less than a month after he was banned from playing for Russia for four years because of a positive test for cocaine.
