NHL nixes Kovalchuk's ridiculous 17-year deal

By Chris Vannini

Created:
07/21/10 6:33pm

Last updated:
07/21/10 6:36pm

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If Ilya Kovalchuk’s 17-year, $102 million contract seemed crazy to you, you aren’t alone. The NHL announced Wednesday that Kovalchuk’s contract with the New Jersey Devils had been rejected by the league office.

Why? It wasn’t simply the fact that 17 years is ridiculous, it was how the money was spread across the length of the deal. In the contract, Kovalchuk was slated to only earn $550,000 in the final five years of the contract — five years Kovalchuk likely wouldn’t have played considering he would have been 44 when the contract ended. $98.5 million would have been earned in the first 11 years.

But because the contract spanned 17 years, the average yearly salary of the contract — $6 million — is what affects the team’s salary cap. So the sole purpose of adding the extra years was to make sure Kovalchuk got his money while the Devils didn’t absorb as much of a cap hit. The Detroit Red Wings made similar deals with Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen, who signed 12- and 11-year deals, respectively, taking $6 million and $3.9 million cap hits. But those players likely will play out those contracts.

Although the Kovalchuk deal is not technically illegal under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, it was absurd enough for the NHL to reject the deal.

“There is nothing that we have done wrong,” Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello told ESPN.com. “This is within the rules. This is in the CBA. There are precedents that have been set. But I would agree we shouldn’t have these. I’m also saying that because it’s legal and this is something that ownership felt comfortable doing for the right reasons.”

The NHL Players’ Association has five days from Wednesday to file a grievance. If it does, an independent arbitrator would have 48 hours to determine if the league was right to reject the contract.

Even more interesting are reports that Lamoriello knew the deal was going to be rejected by the league, but he still went forward with a press conference Tuesday to announce the deal.

However this turns out, the Kovalchuk free agency saga is far from over. If the NHL’s rejection holds, Kovalchuk will be an unrestricted free agent again and the Los Angeles Kings may still be able to bring the superstar to Hollywood.

It ain’t over yet, McGavin.

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Sports editor Chris Vannini writes about some of the most talked about news in the world of sports. From the Stanley Cup Finals to the World Cup, The Watercooler will offer you insight into the biggest news in the sports world.

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