Speculation: Still Still Much Ado About Kovy - Still still still in Russia

[Bcap88]

http://www.tsn.ca/radio/audio/dreger-maple-leafs-likely-have-no-interest-in-kovalchuk-1.770353

can likely cross off toronto, I truly believe no one knows anythinmg

 

[Billdo]

According to some unverified Facebook hockey page, we are working on a deal with San Jose where we trade Kovy for Justin Braun.

 

[MartyOwns]

According to some unverified Facebook hockey page, we are working on a deal with San Jose where we trade Kovy for Justin Braun.

eh...I hope that's not the case.

 

[Billdo]

eh...I hope that's not the case.

If that leaves Lovejoy as the odd man out I'd be ok with it.

 

[Balance]

The reality is that all these destinations are inaccurate because nobody is actually hearing from the Kovalchuk camp. These are just speculations in where he'd like to go and no real reporting in terms of talking to Kovalchuk.

This reminds me when Kovalchuk was all but guaranteed to sign with the Kings and then signed with the Devils. Nobody knew anything in reality besides Kovy going over to LA.

 

[Billdo]

The reality is that all these destinations are inaccurate because nobody is actually hearing from the Kovalchuk camp. These are just speculations in where he'd like to go and no real reporting in terms of talking to Kovalchuk.

This reminds me when Kovalchuk was all but guaranteed to sign with the Kings and then signed with the Devils. Nobody knew anything in reality besides Kovy going over to LA.

Well I mean it's unlikely his camp comes out and says we're talking to the Panthers, Sharks, Rangers, etc. It's not going to be as public as a free agent signing.

 

[JrFischer54]

There's no way we get a first and a legit prospect.

The first round pick will be late and a legit prospect isn't even in the lineup for the contending team. If a team has a window open now I'm fine shipping a 20 something first and our prospect if it gives us An advantage over the other 8 teams in the conference. But hey that's just me.

Will it sting for a team in the future? Maybe but hey your adding a 45pt player imo and it's not taking away from the current lineup today.

 

[ScottyK]

No chance dude...no chance. a 2nd round pick or half decent 2nd liner at max.

 

[SpeakingOfTheDevils]

No one is going to pay an exorbitant price just for the hell of it. There would have to be a decently competitive bidding war, and I just don't see multiple teams lining up with packages that are similarly outrageous.

 

[Billdo]

The first round pick will be late and a legit prospect isn't even in the lineup for the contending team. If a team has a window open now I'm fine shipping a 20 something first and our prospect if it gives us An advantage over the other 8 teams in the conference. But hey that's just me.

Will it sting for a team in the future? Maybe but hey your adding a 45pt player imo and it's not taking away from the current lineup today.

Eh, crazier things have happened but I don't see this happening. Who knows though.

 

[Triumph]

The reality is that all these destinations are inaccurate because nobody is actually hearing from the Kovalchuk camp. These are just speculations in where he'd like to go and no real reporting in terms of talking to Kovalchuk.

This reminds me when Kovalchuk was all but guaranteed to sign with the Kings and then signed with the Devils. Nobody knew anything in reality besides Kovy going over to LA.

If you don't think these leaks are coming from the Kovalchuk camp, you have to believe either A: they are coming from the organizations themselves or B: the journalists are making things up.

Let's disregard B entirely. Let's look at A. What do these organizations benefit from leaking this information? Each organization involved implicitly drives up the price for the player. Why would Columbus leak this information to Larry Brooks? It serves almost no purpose for them. They're not likely to get Kovalchuk. Why would they leak to a NY-based journalist that they're interested? The only way I can see that making sense is if they have a quid pro quo with the journalist that they will leak information like this in exchange for other information either being kept silent about or shaded in a positive light towards the leaker. That seems awfully more convoluted than Option C: Kovalchuk's camp is leaking this information - Brooks isn't in Columbus, and how many favors could he owe someone over there?

Grossman knows how Lou operates and Lou signed two Grossman clients the same summer he signed Kovalchuk. Remebering 2010, it's also possible, given that Larry Brooks seemed to have information about Kovalchuk, that Gulitti and Chere were given that information by Grossman over that summer but chose not to use it because of potential retribution from Lou regarding access.

Well I mean it's unlikely his camp comes out and says we're talking to the Panthers, Sharks, Rangers, etc. It's not going to be as public as a free agent signing.

It's going to be more public and it already is with these revelations, if we assume them to be true. Shero has already said Grossman is negotiating with NHL teams, and he's perfectly free to do that - Kovalchuk does not currently have an NHL contract and the Devils do not possess exclusive negotiating rights with him. Also, any public negotiating done with the NHL only serves to raise the price for him in the KHL as well as the NHL. Get as many names out there as possible.

 

[Balance]

If you don't think these leaks are coming from the Kovalchuk camp, you have to believe either A: they are coming from the organizations themselves or B: the journalists are making things up.

Let's disregard B entirely. Let's look at A. What do these organizations benefit from leaking this information? Each organization involved implicitly drives up the price for the player. Why would Columbus leak this information to Larry Brooks? It serves almost no purpose for them. They're not likely to get Kovalchuk. Why would they leak to a NY-based journalist that they're interested? The only way I can see that making sense is if they have a quid pro quo with the journalist that they will leak information like this in exchange for other information either being kept silent about or shaded in a positive light towards the leaker. That seems awfully more convoluted than Option C: Kovalchuk's camp is leaking this information - Brooks isn't in Columbus, and how many favors could he owe someone over there?

Grossman knows how Lou operates and Lou signed two Grossman clients the same summer he signed Kovalchuk. Remebering 2010, it's also possible, given that Larry Brooks seemed to have information about Kovalchuk, that Gulitti and Chere were given that information by Grossman over that summer but chose not to use it because of potential retribution from Lou regarding access.



It's going to be more public and it already is with these revelations, if we assume them to be true. Shero has already said Grossman is negotiating with NHL teams, and he's perfectly free to do that - Kovalchuk does not currently have an NHL contract and the Devils do not possess exclusive negotiating rights with him. Also, any public negotiating done with the NHL only serves to raise the price for him in the KHL as well as the NHL. Get as many names out there as possible.

I can guarantee that every source is making this information up in terms of where Kovalchuk is going. First of all, Kovalchuk is not even in North America right now and he is a Russian. No media sources can even come in contact with him, he seems to be very quiet in the media. Nobody even came close to contact with him during his free agency stint for a month when he was in North America. Beyond all of these facts, why are journalists making this stuff up? For extra publicity and press. Kovalchuk gets a lot of clicks online and the reality is that journalists are willing to just make up stuff for additional hits and ad revenue on their websites.

I have seen speculation for the Rangers, Islanders, Panthers, Oilers, Canadiens, Maple Leafs, San Jose Sharks, and St. Louis Blues. What kind of joke is that? Kovalchuk is showing interest in 1/3rd of the league? Yeah right, nobody knows what he wants to do. These so called journalists are not journalists at all, they have as much information as me and you, which is nada. Kovalchuk will do what he wants to do.

But I am confident in this regard: If Kovalchuk comes back to the NHL, he will most likely play here. Why? Shero wants him. Beyond that, Kovalchuk has lived here, he loved playing here, and he faces the least amount of problems in signing here over other teams. He can always be traded at the deadline which is something he knows as well.

 

[WSS11]

Sharks fan here, haven't read much about Kovy's relationship with Deboer while in NJ but would think it was good since there are rumors of him going to SJ. How did Deboer use him in NJ? Did he thrive under Deboers system? Thank you

 

[ScottyK]

Played his best under Pete, loved using him on the PK as well.

 

[WSS11]

Played his best under Pete, loved using him on the PK as well.

Kovi on the PK? Strange lol but I'm not surprised with Deboer. That's good to know. Hopefully the two teams can strike a deal.

 

[ScottyK]

Kovi on the PK? Strange lol but I'm not surprised with Deboer. That's good to know. Hopefully the two teams can strike a deal.

He was a beast on the PK. He was far from a defensive stalwart but he played a very good 2 way game under Deboer.

 

[Balance]

Sharks fan here, haven't read much about Kovy's relationship with Deboer while in NJ but would think it was good since there are rumors of him going to SJ. How did Deboer use him in NJ? Did he thrive under Deboers system? Thank you

Under Deboer in 2012 Kovalchuk led the league among forwards in average ice time with 24:26. League wide among forwards the 2nd most used was only in the 22 minute range! In 2013 Kovy averaged 24:44. Deboer absolutely loved Kovalchuk, he literally put him on for the full 2 minutes on the PP, was on the first unit penalty kill, and would double shift Kovalchuk on the 1st/2nd and 4th lines when necessary.

In the 2012 playoffs Kovy's play time was reduced due to his back injury though. He was taken off the PK and the Devils PK absolutely tanked it in the playoffs as a result. He still was double shifted at times and his forcheck in the pivotal game 5 with the 4th line ultimately produced the goal that put the Devils in the lead for the series and then he added the helpful finishing touches in game 6 in OT to send the Devils to the cup finals.

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Under Deboer in 2012 Kovalchuk led the league among forwards in average ice time with 24:26. League wide among forwards the 2nd most used was only in the 22 minute range! In 2013 Kovy averaged 24:44. Deboer absolutely loved Kovalchuk, he literally put him on for the full 2 minutes on the PP, was on the first unit penalty kill, and would double shift Kovalchuk on the 1st/2nd and 4th lines when necessary.

In the 2012 playoffs Kovy's play time was reduced due to his back injury though. He was taken off the PK and the Devils PK absolutely tanked it in the playoffs as a result. He still was double shifted at times and his forcheck in the pivotal game 5 with the 4th line ultimately produced the goal that put the Devils in the lead for the series and then he added the helpful finishing touches in game 6 in OT to send the Devils to the cup finals.

the Devils PK did NOT tank because of Kovalchuk

good lord.

 

[Bcap88]

Deboer is going to run this poor 34 year old into the ground

 

[Balance]

the Devils PK did NOT tank because of Kovalchuk

good lord.

Wow, please respond to my post after I post these statistics. I know you're on the Kovalchuk hate bandwagon because its the trendy thing to do, but I would love for you to respond to these easy facts, I just want to see the excuse you make up. PLEASE RESPOND, its entertaining for me to see people try to find excuses

The Best Penalty Kill Percentage in a NHL Season: 89.58%, by the 2011–12 New Jersey Devils

During the 2011-12 season Ilya Kovalchuk managed to have a positive +/- on the penalty kill. The Devils also lead the league in short-handed goals in that season with a total of 15.


Now let's look at the 2011-12 playoffs (a fairly good sample size: 23 games, or 1/4th of a season)

NJ Devils penalty kill percentage: 73.2.
To give you an example of how bad that percentage is, the team with the worst penalty kill this year (the Dallas Stars at #30) had a higher percentage than that through the regular season.



You are telling me that the team went from having the best penalty kill in the history of the NHL with a player that contributed the most points towards SHG in that season had no affect on him being removed from that penalty kill due to injury and the team than having the worst penalty kill through the playoffs. LOL?

 

[Bcap88]

missing kovalchk does not equate roughly a 17 percent difference on the PK. Alot of things were just wrong/off with the PK during that run

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Yea, Ilya Kovalchuk is some sort of defensive stalwart. Taking him off the PK was SURELY the one and only reason that the PK percentage dipped.

I forgot who I was arguing with for a second there. My apologies.

 

[Balance]

"Ilya Kovalchuk did not affect the penalty kill percentage"....

 

[Bcap88]

Him scoring has no effect on penalty kill percentage in fact the penalty still has to be killed off after he scores

 

[Triumph]

Or maybe that the Devils were exceptionally lucky during the season and unlucky in the playoffs, coupled with some players playing worse, especially Kovalchuk himself.