Penguins' Kuzmenko, 30, Takes Leave After Father Killed by Bear

Pittsburgh Penguins forward Andrei Kuzmenko, 30, is taking a leave of absence from the team after his father, Alexander Kuzmenko, 62, was killed by a bear during a fishing trip in Russia, the team said Thursday, according to ESPN.

Kuzmenko practiced with the Penguins earlier Thursday before departing for Russia, ESPN reported. Russian outlet Ren.tv, cited by ESPN, reported that Alexander was attacked Tuesday while fishing in the Tuva Republic, a region in southern Siberia.

What happened to Andrei Kuzmenko's father?

According to the Ren.tv account relayed by ESPN, Alexander Kuzmenko was bitten in the head by a bear that emerged from a wooded area near the fishing site. He suffered extensive tissue damage in the attack. Alexander was described in the report as a highly regarded hockey coach in Russia.

Who else was present, and how did the group respond?

ESPN's report, sourced to Ren.tv, said Alexander was fishing with six other people when the bear attacked. The group was able to scare the animal off and then attempted to get him medical assistance.

Why did it take so long for help to arrive?

The fishing location's dense forest prevented ambulances from reaching the group quickly, ESPN reported. It took hours for an ambulance to locate them. Alexander was eventually airlifted to a hospital in Kyzyl, the capital of the Tuva Republic, but medical staff were unable to save him, and he was pronounced dead, according to the report.

What has the Penguins organization said?

The team confirmed Kuzmenko's leave in a Thursday statement reported by ESPN. "The Pittsburgh Penguins organization was deeply saddened this morning to learn of the passing of Andrei Kuzmenko's father, Alexander," the team's general manager said, according to ESPN's report. The full statement was not published in its entirety in the available source material.

ESPN did not report a timetable for Kuzmenko's return to the team.

Timeline of events

• Tuesday: Alexander Kuzmenko is attacked by a bear while fishing in the Tuva Republic, per the Ren.tv report cited by ESPN.
• Tuesday, later: He is airlifted to a hospital in Kyzyl after ambulances struggle to reach the remote, forested location; he is pronounced dead after medical intervention proves unsuccessful, according to the report.
• Thursday: Andrei Kuzmenko attends Penguins practice, then departs for Russia. The team publicly confirms his leave of absence and his father's death the same day, ESPN reported.

What is not yet known

The available reporting does not specify how long Kuzmenko intends to remain away from the team, nor does it detail funeral arrangements. ESPN's report also does not identify the specific body of water or exact location within the Tuva Republic beyond the region itself. No additional statement from Kuzmenko himself was included in the source material reviewed for this report.

Kuzmenko, who is entering his second full season with Pittsburgh after being acquired in a trade, has not commented publicly through team channels as of Thursday, according to the available reporting. The Penguins' next scheduled activities were not detailed in the source material.

This report is based on ESPN's Sept. 24 story, which in turn cites Russian outlet Ren.tv for details of the attack itself; ESPN's own reporting is limited to confirming the Penguins' statement and Kuzmenko's travel to Russia. Readers should note the attack details originate from a single Russian-language outlet as relayed by ESPN, and HTT News has not independently verified those specifics beyond what ESPN reported.

The Penguins open their regular season in the coming weeks; whether Kuzmenko will be available remains unclear based on the reporting to date.

Who wrote ESPN's report on Kuzmenko's father?

ESPN's story was written by Kristen Shilton, a national NHL reporter for the network, and was published Sept. 24, 2026, at 5:52 p.m. ET, according to the byline and timestamp on the article. Shilton's report is presented as ESPN's own account of the Penguins' statement and Kuzmenko's travel plans, while the specifics of the fishing-trip attack are attributed throughout to Ren.tv's reporting rather than to ESPN's independent newsgathering.

How is the Ren.tv account being treated by ESPN?

ESPN's story does not indicate that its own journalists verified the attack details with Russian authorities, hospital officials in Kyzyl, or any of the six people who were reportedly with Alexander Kuzmenko at the time. The network's published account is presented as a relay of Ren.tv's reporting, with ESPN's confirmed reporting limited to the Penguins' statement and Kuzmenko's departure for Russia.