NHL rejects Devils' deal with Kovalchuk

Yesterday, fans of the New Jersey Devils danced in happiness as the Devils signed the most sought-after free agent on the market, Ilya Kovalchuk to a 17-year $102 million contract.

Today however, they shake their heads in disbelief.

The National Hockey League, led by Commissioner Gary Bettman, rejected Kovalchuk's deal with the Devils due to the fact that the contract circumvents (evades, bypasses) the NHL's salary cap. The deal, which was set to be the largest in the history of the NHL, for now, has been put on hold.

ESPN has the details:

"The contract was rejected because years of low salary at the end of the contract were added for the sole purpose of lowering the cap hit, a person familiar with the issues raised told The Associated Press. The person added that no side believes Kovalchuk will play the final years of the deal at those terms. The star forward was slated to earn only $550,000 in each of the last five seasons of the contract that was to run through the 2026-27 season, when Kovalchuk would be 44.

Kovalchuk was to earn $6 million each of the next two seasons, $11.5 million for the following five seasons, $10.5 million in the 2017-18 season, $8.5 million for the 2018-19 season, $6.5 million in 2019-20, $3.5 million in 2020-21, $750,000 the following season, and $550,000 for the final five years of the unprecedented deal."

The National Hockey League Players' Association has five days from Wednesday to grieve the rejection of the contract. If a grievance is filed against the NHL, an arbitrator, who will have to be agreed upon by the league and the NHL players' union, will have two days to determine if the rejection of Kovalchuk's deal was valid or not. If the deal is voided, Kovalchuk will still be an unrestricted free agent and can be signed by any team.

It certainly isn't the first disagreement the NHL has had over long term contracts, including reviews of:

- The Philadelphia Flyers' seven-year, $34.45-millon deal with Chris Pronger
- The Vancouver Canucks' 12-year, $64-million deal with Roberto Luongo
- The Chicago Blackhawks' 12-year, $62.8-million contract with Marian Hossa

This is going to be an interesting case. Hopefully the league can sort this whole thing out and Kovy can return to the Devils and earn the money he deserves since he is one of the NHL's best players. Could the Los Angeles Kings jump back in? Could the KHL still be interested? Discuss it in the comments.

Your NHL Champions: The Chicago Blackhawks

Just as I earlier predicted (and you agreed with me too on the poll!) the Chicago Blackhawks beat the Philadelphia Flyers tonight 4-3 in OT to become the Stanley Cup champions for the first time in 49 years. Talk about a great game and boy, what an intense game it was.

1st period:
The first period was a battle. Goals didn't start happening until near the end of the period when, at 16:49, Dustin Byfuglien scored his 11th goal on a Power Play with Assists by Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane to give the Hawks an early 1-0 lead. However, the lead wouldn't last much longer because at 19:33 Scott Hartnell scored his 7th goal on a Power Play with assists by Danny Briere and Chris Pronger to tie it at 1-1. That would prove to be all for the 1st.

2nd period:
The 2nd period was a bit different. At 8:00, Danny Briere scored his 12th goal with Assists by Ville Leino and Lukas Krajicek to give the Flyers a 2-1 lead. It wouldn't be for long though as at 9:58, Patrick Sharp scored his 11th goal with Assists by Dave Bolland and Duncan Keith to help the Hawks tie it 2-2. The Hawks would later score another goal, this time by Andrew Ladd, his 3rd, with assists by Niklas Hjalmarsson and Patrick Kane at 17:43, giving the Hawks a commanding 3-2 lead going into the 3rd.

3rd period:
Perhaps the most intense period of the game going into the final minutes. It wasn't until 16:01 that Scott Hartnell scored another goal, this time his 8th with assists by Ville Leino and Danny Briere to tie the game 3-3. As the minutes counted down, and the intensity of the game continued, one could sense it was coming: overtime.

Overtime:
It was sudden-death overtime and the tension was way up. However, it didn't last long. At 4:06, Patrick Kane, the Hawks' face of the franchise, scored a goal, his 10th with an assist by Brian Campbell to give the Hawks the win 4-3 and the crowing of NHL Champions. Although it took a few seconds due to a review of the goal, the game was exciting nonetheless. Congrats to the Blackhawks!

This was a sick game to watch. There was intensity on all sides and a lot of good hits and goals. I find it funny that, of all people, Patrick Kane happens to score the winning goal. He's the face of their franchise and it seems like it was destiny. Although the end of the game was anti-climatic due to the review, the game was very enjoyable and I knew it was over once Patrick Kane jumped in the air.

So comes another off-season in which we will have to wait for free agents to sign. "Where will Illya Kovalchuck land?" is probably the biggest question. Keep it here!

Congrats to the Chicago Blackhawks, the 2010 NHL Champs!

Ovechkin vs. Crosby

Hey guys, this is an article I wrote for my school paper not too long ago. It's a hockey article based on hockey's ultimate question: Who's hockey's best player? Alex Ovechkin or Sidney Crosby?


Alex Ovechkin vs. Sidney Crosby: The Debate Continues
By Josh Handszer

Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. The Rivals. Ovi and Sid the Kid. Since both players emerged into the NHL during the 2005-06 season, they have had the media spotlight upon them. Both are #1 overall draft picks as well as Captains of their teams. Among being the game’s two best players, they are only set to get better as they mature. Their accomplishments have sparked the great debate of the NHL: Who is the better player? Some decide the 22 year-old Crosby, Canada’s golden boy and Wayne Gretzky’s heir. Other decide the Russian-born, accolade accumulating, show-boating, 24 year-old Ovechkin. They are easily comparable and also easily contrasting players. So, who is the best player in the NHL? I give my vote to:

Alex Ovechkin
Jersey: #8
Position: Left Wing
Team Affiliated: Washington Capitals

MVP. Face of the NHL. Phenomenal. Best in the game. Powerful. Aggressive. The Human High-Light Reel. Those are the words used to describe arguably the best player in the NHL: Alex Ovechkin. Many argue that Crosby is better than Ovechkin. While arguable, I tend to believe that this is mistaken. Ovi actually leads Crosby in individual stats and shows how much better he is with his performance on the ice. Another factor which has prompted many to crown Crosby best in the game is because Crosby is from Canada, where the spot originated and where “The Great One,” Wayne Gretzky is from. While Crosby was in the minors, many believed he would be the heir to Gretzky, mainly because he is Canadian like Gretzky and that he has great skill. This furthermore increases the hype and overrates Crosby as the better player. Ovechkin,
who is from Russia, is sometimes not perceived as better because he is from Russia rather than from Canada. Hockey fans want to see Crosby become the better player because he is Canadian, like the sport. As well, the two players dislike each other, often making comments on one another’s performance on the ice and trash talking. One could not ask for more from hockey’s two best players. They are hockey’s greatest rivals.

In his career (2009-10 included), Ovechkin has a career total of 516 points and 263 goals in contrast to Crosby’s 484 points and 177 goals. Ovechkin has the greater numbers than Crosby, even though they began their careers the same season. However, one may argue about their positions. Ovechkin is a left wing while Crosby is a center. It is well known that wingers usually score more goals and accumulate more points than centers. But Crosby is considered as good if not better than Ovechkin not because of his career numbers, but because of his role in championships. In the 2008-09 season, Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup after they defeated the Detroit Red Wings. To get to the Cup game they defeated Ovechkin and the Caps in the Conference Semi-Finals. At the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, Crosby and Team Canada crushed Ovechkin and Team Russia 7-3 in the Quarter Finals, eventually winning the gold medal over Team USA. Crosby’s championships certainly do tell the story to why he is in the discussion. However, while Ovechkin doesn’t have the championships he does have 2 MVPs, the Rookie of the Year award, and 2 Most Outstanding Player awards.

While accolades certainly don’t stand out as much as championships do in sports when debating the best player, Ovechkin is certainly an exception. With a keen sense on the ice and an attitude committed to winning Alex Ovechkin, arguably, is the best player in the NHL. Perhaps Ovechkin will get his shot at a championship this year, as the Caps currently are in 1st place in the Eastern Conference and have the best record overall at 47-14. Wouldn’t it be great to see an Ovechkin vs. Crosby Eastern Conference final? It would truly bring out the best in both players to decide who is the best. As of now, I have to pick Ovechkin as hockey’s best player for years to come. His performance on the ice amazes hockey fans everywhere. It is truly a privilege to watch him skate. While Crosby is a fantastic player, Ovechkin is a better player skillfully. Sorry Sid the Kid, but Ovi is hockey’s savior.



Agree/Disagree? Have at it!

picture citations:
http://i.a.cnn.net/si/2008/writers/michael_farber/03/18/60.goals0324/p1_ovechkin.jpg
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/multimedia/photo_gallery/0905/nhl.playoffs.crosby.ovechkin.rivalry/images/sidney-crosby-alex-ovechkin-game-7.jpg
http://cdn.faniq.com/images/blog/ce9f0e75cc73a018dcebb06810d74d98.jpg
http://flamesfan77.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/sidney_crosby_og_al_219069c.jpg