The Washington Capitals are struggling to stay afloat at the midpoint of the 2023-24 NHL season. Washington sits with 51 points, second-to-last in the Metropolitan Division. Moreover, veteran center Evgeny Kuznetsov is set to miss time away from the Capitals after an announcement from the NHL and NHLPA.

Washington will lose Kuznetsov's service for an unspecified amount of time 

Evgeny Kuznetsov will be out indefinitely to receive care from the NHL and NHLPA, per the NHL Public Relations X account. This was the statement released on the center:

“The National Hockey and National Hockey League Players' Association announced today that forward Evgeny Kuznetsov of the Washington Capitals will be unavailable to his club for an indefinite period while he receives care from the Player Assistance Program of the NHLPA and NHL.”

The statement continued, “Under the terms of the joint program, he will return to the Club when cleared for on-ice competition by the program administrators.”

Details of Kuznetsov's circumstances were not provided. Hopefully, everything is okay and the center will undergo a speedy recovery. His stats during the 2023-24 season are not eye-popping. Yet, his contributions have remained valuable.

The 31-year-old amassed six goals, 11 assists, and 17 points halfway through the year. Washington will have to find a way to replace his veteran presence amid their Metropolitan Division slump. The Capitals are on a four-game losing streak following Jan. 27th loss to the Dallas Stars.

Thankfully, Washington has a chance to bounce back in the latter half of the season. The team will take the ice on Feb. 6th against the Montreal Canadiens.