@Jay_Grossman RE: questions regarding Ilya Kovalchuk, there has been direct and thorough communication with NJ throughout

Slava Malamud ‏@SlavaMalamud

Kovalchuk tells Sport-Express he'll be on a plane to US Jan. 15 "Alas, (staying) is not realistic. I have contractual obligations to honor"

And once he starts playing the regular season we (along with Devils' players for those interested in the potential drama) will forget that this ever happened.

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UHL Calgary Flames
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Twitter:@DH_EricDaoust.

Word. This whole thing has been a tempest-in-a-teapot if I ever saw one.

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12 H2H w/ daily changes.
G,A,+/-,PPP,SOG,W,GAA,Sv%.
Keep 6 (5 F/D, 1 D/G) Start 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 3D, 2Util, 2G

C: Getzlaf, Bergeron, Roy, Boyes (RW)
LW: Kovalchuk (RW), Vanek, Lucic
RW: Gaborik, Callahan, C. Stewart, Tarasenko, Chiasson
D: Yandle, Doughty, Goligoski, Carlson
G: Fleury, Varlamov, Markstrom
IR:

so how does that work exactly if a player does that and stays in the KHL? lets say a guy has 5 years left at 5mil per year and he stays in the KHL for 4 years and then wants to come back to the NHL to play when he's 40 or something. Is the team on the hook for his salary at that point or can they goto arbitration or something?

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Thats me on the street with a violin under my chin, playing with a grin, singing gibberish.





P=1 DPts=1.2 +/-=.32 PIM=.08 PPP=.4 SHP=.6 S=.015 Blk=.2 Hit=.08
W=2 OTL=.8 GA=-.64 SV=.08 SO=3

Pro (23 keep 17)
C- Filppula,Turris,Stastny,Backstrom
D-Boyle,MDZ,Karlsson,Robidas,Goligoski,Schenn,Seiden berg
G-Anderson,Hiller,Rinne
LW-Malone,Parise,Rolston,Eriksson,Ruutu
RW-Alfredsson,Callahan,Setoguchi,Brown,Ryder,Vrbata

Farm (9 keep all, max 200 GP, 100 Goalies)
Colborne,Leblanc,Loktionov,Perreault,Tangradi,Blum ,Poulin,Markstrom

I just find it funny that people play up the team aspect so much. I mean, a guy I work with talked to me about potentially wanting to move on to a different job at some point. I didn't immediately pull him aside and chew him out. I don't give him a dirty look every time I see him in the hallway thinking HOW DARE YOU! Kovalchuk will return to New Jersey and life will move on.

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UHL Calgary Flames
24-team H2H (roto G, A, GWG, SHP, PPP, PIM, +/, SOG, Hits, Blks, FOW, W, SV, SV%, GAA, SO)

Capped article archive

Montreal Canadiens coverage

Twitter:@DH_EricDaoust.

I don't think there's any predefined rules for that. Just look at Tim Thomas situation. Bruins can't declare the contract as void. They can suspend the player and not have to pay anything to him. They could also do as Nashville did with Radulov and extend the year the player owes to the team when the player wants to return to NHL. But they can't immediately just get rid of the deal like it's never happened.

In your example, if the team wouldn't want the player back I guess they could take it to arbitration. Or trade the player. But not sure they can just flat out refuse to have anything to do with that final year of the deal. The players have it really good with their guaranteed contracts in NHL.

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UHL Pittsburgh Penguins

24 Team Fantrax Salary Cap H2H Dynasty League Daily
G, A, +/-, PIM, PPP, SHP, GWG, SOG, Hits, Blks, FOW
W, GAA, SV, SV%, SO
23 Man Roster - 3C, 3LW, 3RW, 3F, 6D, 1G, 4BN, 4IR
27 Man Minor Team

C- Tavares, Stepan, Hodgson, Shaw, Bjugstad
LW- Ryan, Perron, Downie, Killorn, Rinaldo
RW- Wheeler, Simmonds, Coyle, Frattin, Boyes
D- Pietrangelo, JJ, Bogosian, EJ, Josi, Cowen, Muzzin
G- Lehtonen

F: Granlund, Silfverberg, Jensen, Dalpe, Bowman, Knight, Fasth, JAM
D: Beaulieu, Koekkoek, Gelinas, Pysyk, McCabe, Irwin
G: Nilsson, Nilstorp, Ramo, Berra, Brossoit, Gibson

I think it's case-by-case. The Bruins are letting Thomas sit out but on the other hand I remember the Sens getting Alexei Yashin to honor that year he skipped. The Predators also were able to get Radulov to finish the final year of his ELC when he returned.

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UHL Calgary Flames
24-team H2H (roto G, A, GWG, SHP, PPP, PIM, +/, SOG, Hits, Blks, FOW, W, SV, SV%, GAA, SO)

Capped article archive

Montreal Canadiens coverage

Twitter:@DH_EricDaoust.

that's interesting...and yes it really does benefit the player...because if a team signs you to a multi-year deal in your early 30s they're expecting prime production from you. So if you were to sit out in Europe for several years and then come back at the end of your career, you're not exactly worth what you once were in terms of salary and production

__________________
Thats me on the street with a violin under my chin, playing with a grin, singing gibberish.





P=1 DPts=1.2 +/-=.32 PIM=.08 PPP=.4 SHP=.6 S=.015 Blk=.2 Hit=.08
W=2 OTL=.8 GA=-.64 SV=.08 SO=3

Pro (23 keep 17)
C- Filppula,Turris,Stastny,Backstrom
D-Boyle,MDZ,Karlsson,Robidas,Goligoski,Schenn,Seiden berg
G-Anderson,Hiller,Rinne
LW-Malone,Parise,Rolston,Eriksson,Ruutu
RW-Alfredsson,Callahan,Setoguchi,Brown,Ryder,Vrbata

Farm (9 keep all, max 200 GP, 100 Goalies)
Colborne,Leblanc,Loktionov,Perreault,Tangradi,Blum ,Poulin,Markstrom

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=650160

of course all bloggers/pundits who made the big to do about nothing will not admit to being wrong in their assessment of the situation