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Kovalchuk Retired Effective Immediately?


GoArmySports

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Re the jerseys, I'm pretty sure they can change the name without much of a problem, although you're apparently stuck with the number.  I'm waiting to see when a quality player ends up taking 9 to switch out Parise. 

 

A lot of times when you re-do a jersey, since even the stitched jerseys are initially glued down before they are sewn-on there are usually glue residue or shadows of the numbers left behind.  Unless you are just swapping out the nameplate you might run into this problem.  The best number to change to for 17 is probably 12 but we won't know who has that number either. 

Also changing the nameplates for the glued-on NHL.com crappy customization is actually not an issue, but unless you get it professionally done jerseys done by companies like EPS it is a pain in the ass to strip.  Better to get that professionally done too.

 

Also I can not and will not heckle anyone who wears a Kovy jersey to the arena.  Up until a few days ago Kovy was the safest bet along with Elias and Brodeur in terms of keeping your jersey relevent and cannot blame those who invested in it thinking Kovy was going to stay here for a long time.  If you are heckling someone wearing a Kovy jersey you should be punched in the face.

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I find the Kovalchuk women's honesty refreshing.  We could use more of that in sports rather than the usual, overtired cliches.

 

Doesn't come off as very classy though, on their part.  I'm sure Lou has plenty he could say, but he's not. 

 

Not mad at Kovy, nor was I ever.. really. What I was (and still am a little, to a lesser degree) was sad and disappointed. I was sad Ilya was not honoring his commitment that he agreed on. What I HOPE going forward, is that this whole fiasco will deter GM’s\Owners from wanting to lock-up players for 10+ years. When Kovy signed the 17 year contract to stay in NJ, he was 26 years old. It’s difficult enough for anyone to make that kind of decision to play anywhere, let alone a 26 year old kid. Granted at 26 you are an adult, and obviously capable of making long-term decisions. But I gotta believe this may’ve been a whole lot simpler, if we’re talking about a 6 year deal, instead of a lifetime contract. Imagine how much easier this may have been for Lou (or any GM for that matter) to try and talk Kovy into staying, if there’d have been 2 more years remaining on his contract.. as opposed to 11. Don’t get me wrong, this sucks bigtime! However, as much as I may want to get angry at Kovalchuk, I can’t kill a guy for having a change of heart. --and who the hell knows.. he may one day very well return to this organization.

 

EDIT: This is a little OT, but whatever. imo, if you have a Kovalchuk jersey, wear it! If you don't want to, that's certainly your right. But if you spent hard earned money on a jersey of a player you thought would spend his whole career here, and you're on the fence.. wear it! When stuff like this happens, it is completely unfair to the fan. (unless they have that type of disposable income to just go buy another jersey) But to a kid that may have saved up for a Kovy jersey.. or got it as a birthday\christmas present, and still may wants wear it to games.. they should be able to wear it without being heckled by drunken a$$hole fans. The Devils\Kovy saga may not have ended well, but for 4 seasons there were happy moments.

 

Kovy was 27 years old when he signed his mega-deal...may seem like nitpicking, but a fact nonetheless.

 

In bold:  NHL UFAs are now restricted to 7-year deals if they go to another team, and can get an 8-year deal if they stay with their current team.  No more 9+ year deals in the NHL. 

 

Your point on the Kovy jersey is a fair one...I would hope Devils fans would understand that buying a jersey for some people is a big deal and a serious financial investment, or might be a gift that means more to them than the name and number on it, and not everyone can just afford to throw out/burn up/trash a jersey to make a statement.  The logo on the front is what matters.   

 

I don't know how the Devils could ever welcome Kovy back...I think some fans might be willing to try to understand why he did what he did, but I think he is somewhere between strongly disliked and outright hated by just about ALL of the Devils fanbase.  Even though what he did was clearly the right thing for HIM, that doesn't mean the fans will ever forgive and forget.  He let a lot of people down...I don't know if he cares about that or not, but he can't possibly be oblivious to that. 

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976
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Jagr, again, had marvelous results and it was a conditional 1st round pick.  

 

Plenty of NHL GMs stayed away from Kovalchuk in 2010 and that was before he was thought to be a threat to run to Russia.  I'm really not sure how a team justifies trading anything of significance for the right to sign Ilya Kovalchuk in 2018-19 when he's been out of the NHL for several years.

 

They stayed away from signing him in 2010 because it meant a huge committment for a long period of time.  It had nothing to do with anyone doubting his abilities.  And in any event, the Kings were willing to give him a nice piece of coin.  He obviously would not be getting the same deal on any return to the NHL, which would actually make him much more attractive. 

 

And the league's perception of Jagr's performance last year is obviously different from yours since he remains unsigned. 

 

Also to give you other past-their-time players that yielded great returns for a few months of service were Brendan Morrow and Iginla. 

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They stayed away from signing him in 2010 because it meant a huge committment for a long period of time.  It had nothing to do with anyone doubting his abilities.  And in any event, the Kings were willing to give him a nice piece of coin.  He obviously would not be getting the same deal on any return to the NHL, which would actually make him much more attractive. 

 

And the league's perception of Jagr's performance last year is obviously different from yours since he remains unsigned. 

 

Also to give you other past-their-time players that yielded great returns for a few months of service were Brendan Morrow and Iginla. 

 

Jagr had marvelous results before he was traded.  He was scoring at a 30 goal pace.  That's what I was referring to.  Morrow was awful in the playoffs with a Sestito-esque shot rate and is still unsigned.  Iginla was also bad but performed well on the power play.

 

Whatever, I'm not going to sweat about the 3rd round pick in 2018 or 2019 that the Devils are losing by not having exclusive negotiation rights or whatever they'd get.

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Jagr had marvelous results before he was traded.  He was scoring at a 30 goal pace.  That's what I was referring to.  Morrow was awful in the playoffs with a Sestito-esque shot rate and is still unsigned.  Iginla was also bad but performed well on the power play.

 

Whatever, I'm not going to sweat about the 3rd round pick in 2018 or 2019 that the Devils are losing by not having exclusive negotiation rights or whatever they'd get.

 

I think it would be a lot more than a third round pick. What teams are willing to give up for past-their-prime rentals, is an indication that teams would give up something useful for a younger Kovalchuk that they would presmuably be able to sign on a three year deal with a salary cap that could very well be at $90 million. 

 

And it wouldn't be exclusive negotiating rights like you have in two weeks before free agency. 

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A lot of times when you re-do a jersey, since even the stitched jerseys are initially glued down before they are sewn-on there are usually glue residue or shadows of the numbers left behind.  Unless you are just swapping out the nameplate you might run into this problem.  The best number to change to for 17 is probably 12 but we won't know who has that number either. 

Also changing the nameplates for the glued-on NHL.com crappy customization is actually not an issue, but unless you get it professionally done jerseys done by companies like EPS it is a pain in the ass to strip.  Better to get that professionally done too.

 

Also I can not and will not heckle anyone who wears a Kovy jersey to the arena.  Up until a few days ago Kovy was the safest bet along with Elias and Brodeur in terms of keeping your jersey relevent and cannot blame those who invested in it thinking Kovy was going to stay here for a long time.  If you are heckling someone wearing a Kovy jersey you should be punched in the face.

I don't think I'll ever heckle another fan, especially over something like what jersey they're wearing lol

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I think it would be a lot more than a third round pick. What teams are willing to give up for past-their-prime rentals, is an indication that teams would give up something useful for a younger Kovalchuk that they would presmuably be able to sign on a three year deal with a salary cap that could very well be at $90 million. 

 

And it wouldn't be exclusive negotiating rights like you have in two weeks before free agency. 

 

There is an enormous difference between a rental, which is taking in a proven player for less money than you would otherwise have to pay him, and trading for the rights of an older player.  The point is you wouldn't have any idea whether or not you could actually sign him, even if he said he'd sign with your team.

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I don't think I'll ever heckle another fan, especially over something like what jersey they're wearing lol

This past season I saw fans at the rock give sh!t to other fans who had parise jerseys on.

I can only imagine the abuse those who dare wear a kovy jersey. Those wearing a kovy Russian lockout jersey should might as well stay home as I fear for their safety.

These people spent good money and should be left alone. They had no clue kovy would pull this sort of crap.

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EDIT: This is a little OT, but whatever. imo, if you have a Kovalchuk jersey, wear it! If you don't want to, that's certainly your right. But if you spent hard earned money on a jersey of a player you thought would spend his whole career here, and you're on the fence.. wear it! When stuff like this happens, it is completely unfair to the fan. (unless they have that type of disposable income to just go buy another jersey) But to a kid that may have saved up for a Kovy jersey.. or got it as a birthday\christmas present, and still may wants wear it to games.. they should be able to wear it without being heckled by drunken a$$hole fans. The Devils\Kovy saga may not have ended well, but for 4 seasons there were happy moments.

I wouldn't wear a Kovalchuk jersey (thankfully I don't have one), but I would never heckle a Devils' fan for having one. I'll heckle opposing team fans, though I try to keep it at least somewhat good natured.

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There is an enormous difference between a rental, which is taking in a proven player for less money than you would otherwise have to pay him, and trading for the rights of an older player.  The point is you wouldn't have any idea whether or not you could actually sign him, even if he said he'd sign with your team.

 

That could be worked out ahead of time.  It's really not that much different from a player with a no-trade telling you the teams he's willing to be traded to.

 

It's really a moot point though, so no sense in discussing it further.

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Some more comments, this time from the man himself:

 

 

http://nhl.si.com/2013/07/15/ilya-kovalchuk-speaks-out-im-sure-i-made-the-right-decision/

 

Love the subtle "shut the hell up" he dropped towards his sister and mom:

“I love my mother and sister very much. Everyone can have their opinion. But I’m going to Russia [to play], not to think about how to get back to the NHL.”
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I don't think I'll ever heckle another fan, especially over something like what jersey they're wearing lol

 

You'd be surprised at the number of asshoIe fans we have.

..quick story; During the 2009 season when Shanny returned to the Devils, my buddy got himself his jersey. Brendan's jersey number was #18 that year. I sh!t you not, he caught crap from 2 different jerk-off's (who couldn't have been older than 20) during the night of the Florida game.. because; "THAT NUMBER'S SARGE'S!" I doubt they realized that; A. Shanahan spent 5 seasons in New Jersey. -&- B. Who really gives a fvck?! :noclue:

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You'd be surprised at the number of asshoIe fans we have.

..quick story; During the 2009 season when Shanny returned to the Devils, my buddy got himself his jersey. Brendan's jersey number was #18 that year. I sh!t you not, he caught crap from 2 different jerk-off's (who couldn't have been older than 20) during the night of the Florida game.. because; "THAT NUMBER'S SARGE'S!" I doubt they realized that; A. Shanahan spent 5 seasons in New Jersey. -&- B. Who really gives a fvck?! :noclue:

 

I'll def believe that.

 

In my post last week about the Stephane Richer signing last month at Sports Minded, there were 18-21 year olds in the line asking who "Richer" was to their parents or older siblings (while pronouncing it as Richer like I have more money and therefore "richer" than you).

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Shanny wore #11 during his first go-round with the Devils, but seems silly that anyone would give somebody wearing a #18 Shanahan jersey crap for doing so.  Seems pretty weak.

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Shanny wore #11 during his first go-round with the Devils, but seems silly that anyone would give somebody wearing a #18 Shanahan jersey crap for doing so.  Seems pretty weak.

 

And I bet no one in 99-2000 season gave people crap for wearing John Madden's jersey while saying it is Dave Barr's or Shanahan's jersey.

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I'll def believe that.

 

In my post last week about the Stephane Richer signing last month at Sports Minded, there were 18-21 year olds in the line asking who "Richer" was to their parents or older siblings (while pronouncing it as Richer like I have more money and therefore "richer" than you).

 

In fairness, if they were 18-21, then they were born in 1992-1995...they completely missed out on Richer's good days with the Devils, and might have faint memories of Richer's 13-game run here in 2002 (reg season and playoffs).  Unless they become dedicated historians of the franchise, or have a relative or older friends that can educate them, I can't expect those fans to know all that much about Stephane Richer.   

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Some more comments, this time from the man himself:

 

 

http://nhl.si.com/2013/07/15/ilya-kovalchuk-speaks-out-im-sure-i-made-the-right-decision/

 

Love the subtle "shut the hell up" he dropped towards his sister and mom:

 

 

This article is quite telling.  I like Kovy's professionalism here.  But, from his intonation, I really think he left to escape NJ.  It wasn't about the money.  He just didn't like the direction NJ was going.

 

Losing Parise and Clarkson set him off.

 

MM

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This article is quite telling.  I like Kovy's professionalism here.  But, from his intonation, I really think he left to escape NJ.  It wasn't about the money.  He just didn't like the direction NJ was going.

 

Losing Parise and Clarkson set him off.

 

MM

 

It's a shame that losing 2 players partly because of his massive contract demands set him off. Poor 'lil fella. Hopefully he enjoys some glorious championship runs with a much more talented team of skating billboards. From the rumors of what his contract is expected to be, I'd say it was definitely about the money.

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In fairness, if they were 18-21, then they were born in 1992-1995...they completely missed out on Richer's good days with the Devils, and might have faint memories of Richer's 13-game run here in 2002 (reg season and playoffs).  Unless they become dedicated historians of the franchise, or have a relative or older friends that can educate them, I can't expect those fans to know all that much about Stephane Richer.   

 

Richer was not some 4th liner though.  He was one of our top scoring guys during that era along with Johnny Mac and Claude Lemieux.  I don't think you have to be a dedicated historian of the team to know who Richer was.  A player like Dave Barr I could understand 18-21 year olds running to the Devils history book when he was announced as assistant coach, but not Richer.

Edited by DevsMan84
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This article is quite telling.  I like Kovy's professionalism here.  But, from his intonation, I really think he left to escape NJ.  It wasn't about the money.  He just didn't like the direction NJ was going.

 

Losing Parise and Clarkson set him off.

 

MM

 

I don't see that at all. He made his decision before Clarkson left. I don't think Zach Parise leaving made him want to go home. With Kovalchuk, this is a very good team. I don't think Kovy even thinks about the potential prospects and draft picks the team makes. I believe him when he says he really liked the Devils organization, enough so that he came back for the second half of the year.

 

I still like Kovy and wish him no ill will. The long contract was obviously a mistake, and I think he felt really trapped in it. I don't think he ever wanted a 15 or 17 year deal. It was just the only way the Devils could circumvent the cap. The penalty sucks, but he shouldn't be blamed for the Devils getting punished or the fact that Lou didn't use it last year when the Devils picked 29th. 

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Richer was not some 4th liner though.  He was one of our top scoring guys during that era along with Johnny Mac and Claude Lemieux.  I don't think you have to be a dedicated historian of the team to know who Richer was.  A player like Dave Barr I could understand 18-21 year olds running to the Devils history book when he was announced as assistant coach, but not Richer.

 

I get what you're saying to an extent, but that was just a few people you saw, and they may not have even been following the team that long. 

 

Funny thing about Richer while he was here was that he was kind of quietly good, even though some of his goals were definitely of the dynamic variety.  Lemieux is more popular because of his spirit and grit and his terrific '95 playoff run...the Devils winning the '00 Cup with him returning to the team cemented his legacy.  MacLean was one of the old-time Devils who had to slog through the bad days and seemed to have to fight for everything he got, and his winning the Cup was almost like a birthright for him, like a validation of having to suffer through so many tough years (ditto Daneyko).  Then you have Brodeur, Stevens, the Crash Line...somehow it almost feels like Richer gets lost in the shuffle a little bit, through no fault of his own.  He had a terrific '95 playoff run too (led the Devils in points in both the '95 regular season AND playoffs, in fact), but ironically, if you could switch his '95 playoffs with Lemieux's, with seemingly EVERY goal by Lemieux hugely important...I think his Devils legacy would have been much grander in the great scheme.  I think in an odd way, Richer seems less memorable, which is why his legacy isn't passed down as much as the Lemieuxs, the MacLeans, the Stevenses.  I think, having scored 50+ twice, everyone from that era was always expecting and hoping for more (fairly or unfairly) than he ultimately put up.      

Edited by Colorado Rockies 1976
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