Nashville Predators forward Sergei Kostitsyn hopes the lockout wipes out the entire 2012-13 NHL season, according to a report that surfaced Monday.
"Let’s put it this way – it would be better (for the players) if the lockout continues," Kostitsyn told Russian daily Sport-Express, via The Globe and Mail. "Players want a definite answer. If the NHL season is lost – let it be that way. I would then play in Russia for the whole season."
Kostitsyn, a native of Belarus, is currently playing for the KHL’s Avangard Omsk during the lockout. He was also quoted in the report as saying, "I couldn’t get used to (American) mentality. They are totally different people from us," and that Columbus is the "gloomiest city" in the United States.
Most reports that come out of Russia should be taken with a grain of salt. Also remember that a translated Czech interview with Michal Neuvirth this summer was misinterpreted, according to Neuvirth.
But if Kostitsyn did in fact mean what was translated in these quotes, he is not alone in wanting to stay overseas. Alex Ovechkin, currently playing for the KHL’s Dynamo Moscow, stated last weekend that he believes many players will stay in Russia for the rest of the season even if a deal comes to fruition between the NHL and NHLPA.
Kostitsyn tallied 43 points in 75 games for the Predators last season and was re-signed a two-year, $6 million contract this summer.