NHL Free Agency Arrives with Ilya Kovalchuk Rumors Swirling Around

Yes, the first of July has arrived, and along with it the starting line for Free Agency in the National Hockey League. As many have begun to call it, the Ilya Kovalchuk derby. The vaunted ex-Atlanta Thrasher and soon to be ex-New Jersey Devil has demonstrated a gift for finding the back of the net over the course of his NHL career. The real question is what team is excited enough about their current line up of stars to land Kovalchuk and his likely huge contract. While few teams would really have the cap space for a superstar, this is the time of year when teams get their accountants and lawyers together and just make it work. there are a ton of Kovalchuk signing rumors with him landing in places from Detroit to Pittsburgh.

Tempting as it might be for many teams to sign the Russian sniper from a marketing perspective, as the guy will likely sell a ton of jerseys, the majority of teams that are in the upper echelon of the NHL do not necessarily need another high priced goal scoring winger. To boot, Ilya Kovalchuk does not boast a lot of NHL playoff experience on his resume, as he played on relatively poor Thrasher team for awhile, and the Devils did not exactly excel in the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, the Devils would most certainly love to retain his services, but as anyone who watched the Devils after Kovalchuk's arrival can attest he did not seem to fit it with the "New Jersey" style of play. The Los Angeles Kings are a team that have the cap space, as nhlnumbers.com has them with just over $17 million of space, plus they could use the help a marquee forward in drawing some fans into the seats.

The one thing many NHL fans do not want to admit is the KHL is also very much alive in any Kovalchuk scenario. The Russian league would love to get their hooks into an NHL player still in his prime and would likely be able to throw around what would amount to serious money. In fact, if desperation kicks in the sum of money offered up in the KHL could prove to be down right impossible to pass up. The entire situation depends on what Kovalchuk wants to do. Everyone can be fairly certain the NHL would love to keep him in their league, and he would put a stamp of authenticity on the KHL. This could be a very interesting couple of days.

sources:
yahoo sports
nhlnumbers.com
personal experience