Speculation: Much Ado About Kovy: Staying in Russia

[None Shall Pass]

Here's an honest question to the sane few on these boards:
Kovi decided to "try" to return to the NHL for next season,
if the rangers were down in the standings and weren't a playoff team, but N.J. was a strong contending team, do you think he would've accepted a contract from us if Ray thought we needed him?

Who honestly knows? If the story is that he wants to play for a contender and he has a house here, probably. But who knows anymore.

 

[The 29th Pick]

Who honestly knows? If the story is that he wants to play for a contender and he has a house here, probably. But who knows anymore.

yeah I dont know so i figured I'd ask, some say he wants only money, some say he wants to play for the rags, some think he wants to win a cup (Stanley) !

 

[Balance]

He owes this team nothing? He signed a 15 year contract and played three years of it, and walked out on us. His demands for a ridiculous salary put us in a position that probably caused Parise to walk. The least he could do is honor his word. He caused us a lot of damage with the contract debacle then the retirement.

Screw him. There's NO WAY I would let him go for a 4th rounder and then sign a multi-year < 35 contract. If nobody wants him (and I can only imagine its because he's been such a jerk) for more, so be it. Let him try to get a good deal as a 35+ contract.

He caused no damage. He didn't walk out on his contract, Lou agreed for him to leave. It was all up to Lou, and he didn't have to agree to Kovalchuk and could have refused. If Kovalchuk left regardless he would have never been able to play in any international competitions nor ever back in the NHL again. So, it was a mutual agreement.

But even then, the contract was not bad. Its one of the most overrated statements I've ever heard in my life. Kovalchuk's contract was a bargain in the long term, it was around a 6.7 cap hit for a star quality player, McDavid just signed 8 years for 100m as an RFA and nobody is saying anything because that's how the market is. Kovalchuk's contract was definitely worth it and Atlanta even offered him a much better deal so in the end he signed a lesser contract to win a cup.

Beyond that, who cares about Parise? The team choked in the playoffs year after year and imagine we signed a long term contract with Parise instead of Kovalchuk. This team would be severely screwed, you do not build your team with a guy like Parise. Kovalchuk is fine, but Parise is literally a borderline 1st line player not a star player whatsoever.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Fact of the matter is Kovalchuk OWES THIS TEAM NOTHING

People in this generation act so entitled

Dumb narrative.

If you are upset about todays generation and are older (do not know if you are) then look in the mirror; you created the entire culture we are in, and then y'all complain about it. Also it has nothing to do with the Kovalchuk topic. Awful post.

 

[Balance]

and Shero and the team owe HIM nothing.

Except nobody is saying that Shero owes him anything

 

[NJDevs26]

Here's an honest question to the sane few on these boards:
Kovi decided to "try" to return to the NHL for next season,
if the rangers were down in the standings and weren't a playoff team, but N.J. was a strong contending team, do you think he would've accepted a contract from us if Ray thought we needed him?

I think he'd go to Vancouver if they offered his asking price, or the KHL team in China. This whole he wanted to play for a contender meme is a red herring, non-contenders aren't throwing big money at a 34-year old ? and trading pick(s) for him to begin with.

 

[Triumph]

lol at using Kovalchuk's running away to Russia and Devils fans wanting some sort of recompense as a 'this generation is so entitled' statement.

 

[The 29th Pick]

I think he'd go to Vancouver if they offered his asking price. This whole he wanted to play for a contender meme is a red herring, non-contenders aren't throwing big money at a 34-year old ? and trading pick(s) for him to begin with.

Vancouver huh, so you think its money over everything else. I had the feeling he just wanted to play in NYC and nowhere else and he figured they would pay him well too.

 

[NJDevs26]

Vancouver huh, so you think its money over everything else. I had the feeling he just wanted to play in NYC and nowhere else and he figured they would pay him well too.

He might have wanted to go to NY but wake me when he takes less money to do so, and don't say when he left Atlanta cause I'm sure he and his agent thought he'd get similar offers on the open market.

 

[Balance]

Dumb narrative.

If you are upset about todays generation and are older (do not know if you are) then look in the mirror; you created the entire culture we are in, and then y'all complain about it. Also it has nothing to do with the Kovalchuk topic. Awful post.

Just the hilarious "I hate Kovalchuk" posts that make no sense at all. So, Kovalchuk did not want to play on this team. I don't blame him, the franchise has literally been horrible for the last 5 years, never even coming close to making the playoffs.

So Kovalchuk then agrees to terms with multiple teams and Shero is unable to trade him and then somehow its his fault? Like, what entitlement by everyone to think that Kovalchuk has to give this team some sort of return or that he cannot play in his home nation or even use both leagues as leverage for a better contract. Simple capitalism, he creates a demand for himself but the sense of entitlement that people think he will sign some low ball offer is just hilarious to me.

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

Who here said that Kovalchuk should sign a low-ball offer?

If anything, the discussion was about retaining on Kovalchuk's deal to maximize the return.

I don't understand this "entitlement" argument.

 

[OmNomNom]

kovalchuk is looking out for one thing - himself. does that make him greedy? to some, sure. but that's his prerogative. if he wants to earn big money and land in a spot that'll do good for his family, how can we blame the guy? i mean, kudos to him for using both the KHL and the NHL as leverage to get as much $ as he could. hockey isn't all there is to life, after all

i'm only upset because i got my hopes up that we'd maybe be able to get something back, but i failed to recognize the possibility that he'd just bounce. oh well

 

[NJDevs26]

kovalchuk is looking out for one thing - himself. does that make him greedy? to some, sure. but that's his prerogative. if he wants to earn big money and land in a spot that'll do good for his family, how can we blame the guy? i mean, kudos to him for using both the KHL and the NHL as leverage to get as much $ as he could. hockey isn't all there is to life, after all

i'm only upset because i got my hopes up that we'd maybe be able to get something back, but i failed to recognize the possibility that he'd just bounce. oh well

He certainly has the right to do what he wants, I just get amused when people try to invent altruistic motives for everything this guy does.

 

[njdevsfn95]

Order of Importance:

1) Devils
2) Defense
Infinity-2) Another Team
Infinity-1) Kovalchuk

 

[devilsblood]

i really dont understand some of you guys logic. ya **** him hes a ***** and i cant stand him as much as most of you BUT by Ray not dealing him we lost out on an opportunity to get a decent return. if its true this POS going back to the KHL just to come back in a year pisses me off even more. we lose again! all because of a spoiled , conceded brat.

How do you know what was offered?

My guess is no team wanted to pay him 3 x 6.5 which was Kovy's rumored asking price. So in order to get a good return we would have to pay for half of that. And even then I'm not sure a team would cough up a first rounder.

I think Kovy, and Kovy fans, and people who think Kovy is still really good, way overvalued the market for Kovy.

 

[NJDevs26]

I think Kovy, and Kovy fans, and people who think Kovy is still really good, way overvalued the market for Kovy.

That and people are also overvaluing the value of getting a 5th rounder back for 50% retention on a three year deal just to 'get' something.

 

[ForeverJerseyGirl]

Kovy is an older forward who hasn't played in the NHL for a handful of seasons with a bad back and questionable commitment. He probably isn't as desirable a commodity to NHL teams as he thought he would be. If he were really worth a lot to NHL teams, I'm sure Kovy and Shero could have found a team that was willing to pay a fair price to Kovy and to Shero for his services. Assuming that Kovy really wanted to come over at all, of course, because who knows with him?

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

That and people are also overvaluing the value of getting a 5th rounder back for 50% retention on a three year deal just to 'get' something.

Teams probably were hesitant to give up much for Kovalchuk as it was, let alone paying more for us to retain on the deal to make the cap work.

I suspect the same people annoyed that Shero didn't "get something" for Kovalchuk would've complained that Shero could've done better once the paltry return was announced. Just gotta expect it and roll with it.

 

[Balance]

Joe Thornton just got an 8m contract at 38 years old

Patrick Marleau got 3 years at 6.25 at 37 years old

Kovalchuk is 34 years old and was looking for 6.5m for 3 years and somehow he is "overvaluing" himself.

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

Joe Thornton just got an 8m contract at 38 years old

Patrick Marleau got 3 years at 6.25 at 37 years old

Kovalchuk is 34 years old and was looking for 6.5m for 3 years and somehow he is "overvaluing" himself.

I mean, come on. You're choosing to ignore the context here.

Don't take my word for it.. look at what the hell happened. We don't know how this all transpired, but all indications point to GMs being wary of investing in Kovy for that kind of money and term.

 

[None Shall Pass]

 

[ForeverJerseyGirl]

At this point, I don't even want to know all the Kovy drama. Probably bad for my blood pressure.

 

[NJDevs26]

I mean, come on. You're choosing to ignore the context here.

Don't take my word for it.. look at what the hell happened. We don't know how this all transpired, but all indications point to GMs being wary of investing in Kovy for that kind of money and term.

Plus Thornton isn't even a viable comparison since he signed a one year deal. And you didn't have to trade for him or Marleau.

 

[None Shall Pass]

It's here: https://sports.yahoo.com/behind-sce...s-191858967.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw

 

[None Shall Pass]

"As July 1 approached, Kovalchuk didn’t have a concrete offer from another team. But Grossman had enough interest from three teams to take these potential matches back to Shero in the hopes that they could transition from contractual discussions to the compensation talks.

Shero reached out to all three in the last week.

All three determined they weren’t in on Kovalchuk.

One team was a definite “no.” Another team had something cooking with Grossman, but never circled back to Shero.

The last team traded a few text messages with Shero, before informing the Devils general manager that there were other areas of need they wanted to address ahead of adding Kovalchuk. They were going to circle back with Grossman, but Shero said they never did."

....

"The Devils were a third party in these talks between Kovalchuk and other teams, and the speculation was that Shero’s ask for compensation was expected to be so high that it put off some teams from firming up a contract offer with Kovalchuk. That was according to Igor Eronko of Sports-Express in Russia.

Shero denies that. “I was never presented a deal,” he said.

The New York Post reported that the New York Rangers were heavy in on Kovalchuk, writing that “Shero understandably was hesitant to trade him right across the river.”

But Shero said if a deal was there, he wouldn’t hesitate to trade with the Devils’ arch rivals, with whom the franchise has never made a trade.

“I’d do a deal with the Rangers. I said that all along. I don’t care. I’d do a deal with Jeff Gorton or Garth Snow [of the Islanders] or Ron Hextall [of the Flyers]. It’s about improving our team,” said Shero.