Nobody ever projected Kamenev to have the ceiling that was projected for Buchnevich, that's what is so insincere here. Over and over I see you starting with a conclusion and cherry picking "facts" to support it.
"Kamenev was a KHL regular by the time he left." There are a lot of players in the KHL doing very well who couldn't make it in the NHL. Dawes and Vey were fringe prospects here, they are stars there, and so many more. Kamenev hasn't regressed, he's just slotting in where a player of his talents does over here.
For many players the NHL is the pinnacle of hockey. This apparently includes a lot of Russian born players. Sorry. I love all hockey, and enjoy following the KHL too (to the extent it is possible from Canada), but I'm not going to play along with your delusion that the KHL is anywhere close to the calibre of the NHL. Maybe a couple of the absurdly stacked teams, but outside of that the idea is laughable.
I agree with the others though, it is a bad idea to engage your arguments on individual player threads because you will derail so many of the with your specious arguments. I'll leave you with the last word but if you don't explain why so many marginal NA players are successful in the KHL you clearly don't have a leg to stand on.
You are exceeding my expectations at missing the point.
I don't care if you remember or not, but I do. At the tender age of 17-18 both players were considered to have a pretty similar ceiling. It is just a fact. Just like the fact that Buchnevich just developed better. He was as junior just like Kamenev not seen like the future superstar, by far not Kuznetsov/Tarasenko level. So which "facts" do you mean? I am not cherry picking. I just see the whole picture while you reduce it to the current state of affairs. You use it as a wrong conclusion.
You really miss the point of being a KHL regualr. Who the puck cares who the stars in the KHL are(Dawes and Vey aren't, but you would need a longer explanation to understand that, while you obviously don't follow the league)? What does it have to do with my point? Can you please read my post again and understand what the point was?
I see you don't even understand how different the game in both leagues is and think there is a steady curve of talent towards the NHL. "A player of his talents" could slot in anywhere in the KHL or NHL unless he is Ovechkin. There are many more factors to it. Just because a player can't make the top 6 on one NHL team doesn't mean he's bad. Just because a player is scoring a lot on one KHL team doesn't mean he's that good. That is why guys like Evander Kane and Vadim Shipachyov fail.
I don't care for whom the NHL(a local league with spread talent) is the pinnacle. It's not about opinions. Don Cherry has opinions too. What to you is so apparent about Russian players is a mystery to me. Just because Russians play inthe NHL doesn't mean they don't value Olympics more for example. Where the player earns his money is a different issue. Some players chose to stay in Russia for example. Not because they are not good enough for the NHL too. Just because some of them prefer earning their money at home(and the KHL gives them that opportunity). And some want to play in the NHL. And they are athletes too. Obviously playing in the NHL you want to win the Stanley Cup, playing in the KHL you want to win the Gagarin Cup. It is still sports and it is still about winning. But all those cups don't compare to international competition.
Again, it is not about which league is better. It seems North Americans are more obsessed with it, i.e. with proving and statung and fighting for "the best league in the world". I don't even care. And it was never about the NHL in regard to Kamenev. He is not a NHL player. For Kamenev it is about what development path was the best for him. And I stated that playing in the KHL where he already was a regular and had a roster spot would benefit him more than playing in the AHL. Obviouslyin the AHL he hasn't become a better player.
There are no "marginal NA players". Your problem is again the same. You base your "marginal" on the same wrong measuring stick of the NHL. Andrei Markov was still a useful player in he NHL. He can't cut it on the big ring. He is just too slow for the bigger surface. A lot of NHL defencemen would face the same problem if moved to the KHL. While smallish, faster guys like Chris Lee succeeded. Beyond the top talent, who are just too good to fail on any rink(while their stats would differ too) there are players better suited for the big rink or the small rink. A lot of those fringe NHLers come to the KHL and amount to nothing. Don't pick cherries here too. It's not like every NHL reject is a sure shot KHL star or even regular.