Russian hockey starlet Evgeny Kuznetsov is snubbing the Washington Capitals to sign a two-year contract extension with his KHL team Traktor Chelyabinsk, the forward said Tuesday.
Kuznetsov, 20, was the Capitals' No. 1 draft pick in 2010, when he captained the Russian junior team to world championship gold.
"I talked to my parents and decided to stay for two years more," said Kuznetsov. "I am not ready to go to the NHL yet, but I don't want to play in any other Russian club than Traktor."
His KHL contract is up this summer, which had left him the "hard decision" on whether to take up a non-negotiable $1 million deal in Washington, joining his countryman Alex Ovechkin, he said.
Kuznetsov said the extension with Traktor is yet to be signed, and he has not yet informed Washington about his plans to remain in Russia until the Winter Olympics, which the country is hosting for the first time in 2014.
"I really want to play in the Olympics," Kuznetsov said.
This season, Kuznetsov averaged close to a point a game, with 19 goals and 21 assists in 49 matches to help his team to the Continental Cup as regular season champions.
Traktor lost the Eastern Conference final series Friday to Siberian rivals Avangard Omsk, which went on to lose the Gagarin Cup final to Dynamo Moscow.
Kuznetsov is to play for the Russian team at the world hockey championships from May 4 to May 20 in Sweden and Finland.
