Shortly after 5 p.m. yesterday, arbitrator Richard Bloch sided with the NHL and rejected Ilya Kovalchuk's recently signed 17-year, $102 million contract.
Despite this decision, it remains likely that the Russian sniper will remain with the New Jersey Devils. Following the announcement of the decision, Devils GM Lou Lamoriello released a statement that discussions have resumed with Kovalchuk, and that he is hopeful that a new contract will be forthcoming.
New Jersey will likely be forced to give Kovalchuk a contract with a higher overall cap hit, hamstringing its future salary situation.
At first glance, this turn of events appears to be a wholly positive one for the Philadelphia Flyers, by hurting the financial flexibility of a division rival.
However, a footnote on the 19th page of the decision has likely frightened both Flyers fans and the Flyers front office.
Bloch specifically mentions contracts signed by Chris Pronger, Marc Savard, Roberto Luongo, and Marian Hossa as examples of potential cap circumvention.
Then, he states that these contracts "are being investigated currently with at least the possi ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Charlie O'Connor
Ilya Kovalchuk: How The Kovalchuk Decision Affects The Flyers
August 10th, 2010 by Charlie O'Connor Leave a reply »
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