Lockout 2012-2013 (Hockey's back!)

[newarkdev01 12]

I can feel for him, he has played quite a few games for them and I'm sure they are showing him with love so it's never truly "fun" to leave a great situation like that.

All that being said, he is coming off a Stanley Cup appearance so I hope he gets his but back here so we can be ready for a short season.

[Chuck the Duck 361]

Wow. I can't imagine he'd give up the NHL (and the $100 million contract he so coveted). I'm not going to read too much into him playing today for SKA, but I'm sure there is an immense amount of pressure from the heads of that league for him to stay.

[moustic 636]

Slava Malamud ‏@SlavaMalamud

Kovalchuk says, 'I will need to read the new agreement' before he decides what to do next. So there... #NJDevils

Retweeté par Tom Gulitti

[DJ Eco 491]

He'd be walking away from $80 million, a house in Florida and house in Alpine, not to mention not being able to return to the US since he'd no longer have a work visa.

^^^All reasons why these "rumors" are utter nonsense.

[Derlique 582]

Slava Malamud ‏@SlavaMalamud

Kovalchuk says, 'I will need to read the new agreement' before he decides what to do next. So there... #NJDevils

Retweeté par Tom Gulitti

Not that I believe Kovy isn't coming back, but pick your damn words better lol. I'm sure Grossman informed you that you're not losing much

[John Wensink 21]

I think he is worried about how much of the cash from his NHL contract he will loose. He could visit FLA in the summer as a vacationer yes?

Also a new KHL contract could be just as big or bigger cause it could be tax free, just like Jagr's was. He would be THE biggest hockey star in Europe.

His wife was/is? a pop star there. It's home.

I think this may happen, and it will ruin this Devils season and probably many more if it does.

[SterioDesign 2,664]

Bill Daly: "The KHL has confirmed it will honor its agreement with us."

Daly: "I'm not inclined to treat this as a "problem" unless or until its a 'problem.' It's not and I don't expect it to be."

[Triumph 1,396]

Not that I believe Kovy isn't coming back, but pick your damn words better lol. I'm sure Grossman informed you that you're not losing much

To me it sounds like 'Will NHL players be allowed to play at the 2014 Olympics?' fake posturing. Which I'm not sure they've decided. And Kovalchuk can't keep playing in the KHL without risking his eligibility for the 2014 Olympics.

[NJDevs4978 764]

This would be like crossing the streams. It would be bad.

He'd be walking away from $80 million, a house in Florida and house in Alpine, not to mention not being able to return to the US since he'd no longer have a work visa.

And forfeiting 'any' chance to play in Sochi. Not to mention the not so insignificant fact that there's a binding agreement between the NHL and KHL about not poaching players.

[Derlique 582]

Quick question- of course we all know about Radulov bolting to the KHL, but was there a lot of "poaching" going the other way? If not, why would the KHL make that agreement?

[DJ Eco 491]

You guys are getting swept up in the sensationalism of Twitter reporting. The lack of publicity and openness in the Devils organization means that we get Twitter rumor nonsense every once in a while, especially when Kovalchuk is concerned. "Sources in Russia" are usually as reliable as the town gossipers, at best. If you don't think their coaches and league heads have an inferiority complex, and will for KHL to achieve more legitimacy/dominance, you're naive. If your "sources in Russia" are a coach or a league head, or even his mom, you know how they're going to spin it.

Kovalchuk is an emotional player. He was named captain, and led a very skilled and respectable team, and I'm assuming a large proud fanbase. He owes NOTHING to the NHL, the league that locked him out twice in his career, other than to book a flight on Thursday when the players are set to vote on the CBA. Someone like Kovy probably feels like he owes the SKA fans and his teammates a game or two before rushing to pack his bags for a league that took a crap on him yet again (lockout 1, bullsh!t trade procedure/fine, lockout 2, etc.)... He's in peak physical shape, why SHOULD he come back before camp?

[newarkdev01 12]

You guys are getting swept up in the sensationalism of Twitter reporting. The lack of publicity and openness in the Devils organization means that we get Twitter rumor nonsense every once in a while, especially when Kovalchuk is concerned. "Sources in Russia" are usually as reliable as the town gossipers, at best. If you don't think their coaches and league heads have an inferiority complex, and will for KHL to achieve more legitimacy/dominance, you're naive. If your "sources in Russia" are a coach or a league head, or even his mom, you know how they're going to spin it.

Kovalchuk is an emotional player. He was named captain, and led a very skilled and respectable team, and I'm assuming a large proud fanbase. He owes NOTHING to the NHL, the league that locked him out twice in his career, other than to book a flight on Thursday when the players are set to vote on the CBA. Someone like Kovy probably feels like he owes the SKA fans and his teammates a game or two before rushing to pack his bags for a league that took a crap on him yet again (lockout 1, bullsh!t trade procedure/fine, lockout 2, etc.)... He's in peak physical shape, why SHOULD he come back before camp?

Fair enough, but seriously what else are we going to gossip about till they get this thing signed and we open up camp

[Triumph 1,396]

Quick question- of course we all know about Radulov bolting to the KHL, but was there a lot of "poaching" going the other way? If not, why would the KHL make that agreement?

KHL thought Malkin had another year left on his contract in Russia, and Pittsburgh + his American agent conspired to have him basically defect when he was in Sweden for an exhibition game.

[Daniel 1,652]

Quick question- of course we all know about Radulov bolting to the KHL, but was there a lot of "poaching" going the other way? If not, why would the KHL make that agreement?

With the exception of not being able to participate in the Olymics, in the final analysis the transfer agreement isn't really worth the paper its written on. I'm not familiar with the Russian court system, but I highly doubt that the NHL could get a judgment from a Russian court enjoining someone from playing in the KHL because of an agreement between the KHL and the NHL.

[DJ Eco 491]

Fair enough, but seriously what else are we going to gossip about till they get this thing signed and we open up camp

hahaha Exactly! While I usually love our organization's tight-lipped lack of press/Twitter, etc., it really comes crashing down at times like this. The smallest lack of information about a player like Kovalchuk, and everyone with a Twitter account fills in the blanks with their anonymous "sources". On any other team, Kovy would have tweeted himself that he "can't wait to fly back home on Thursday", and this becomes a non-issue.

[Devilsfan118 2,727]

It's TFP, so it's probably as credible as anyone else's word on these boards, but take it for what it's worth:

http://www.thefourthperiod.com/news/njd130108.html

Kovalchuk's preference, the source said, was to finish the week with SKA and then return to New Jersey.

"He will be in New Jersey for the start of camp," the source told TFP. "Technically, there is no (CBA) yet, so he can keep playing in for SKA until (the CBA) is official."

[Kovy138 6]

this got me fired up. i cant wait for hockey, fellas.

Edited January 12, 2013 by Kovy138

[Cachorro Louco 5]

this got me fired up. i cant wait for hockey, fellas.

whatched over 15 times already...