2010 NHL Offseason

This is where I will post news regarding the NHL Offseason/Free Agency. Anything posted here is up for discussion (if any hockey fans ever happen to stumble in here, lol)

--Ilya Kovalchuk re-signs with Devils
Opinion: It's nice to see him staying with a successful team, but if he is being payed more than 3.5 mil/year (which of course he will be) the Devils will need to make moves to fit into salary cap.

--Flyers trade Simon Gagne to Lightning
Opinion: Can't say I didn't see it coming. With rumors of trade stirring up recently, it was bound to happen. It's a great deal for Tampa, who lost Alex Tanguay to free agency. But now that Philly has lost a top scorer, what's next?

--Stars sign Brad Lukowich
Opinion: The 33 year old D-man spent his first 3 full seasons in Dallas, and it's not surprising that he's returned for another go-around. The Dallas D could use as much help as it can get.

It's been announced Kovalchuk will be a Devil for life. His new contract with the team will last 17 years, and is reported to be worth $102 million, or 6 million a year (down from last year's 7.5 million). It's interesting that he turned down so much money (including a reported 14 million a year in Russia), so he must really like the Devils.

So now comes the question. Who will be traded to fit into salary cap? With this signing the Devils are now over the cap roughly 2.5 million. The first name that comes to mind is Danius Zubrus. His contract is huge yet he doesn't see enough playing time to make it worthwhile. I'm sure a lot of teams would love to have a big-bodied scorer such as himself.

I'm a little late posting this, but oh well.

The NHL has rejected the hisorical 17 year contract given to Ilya Kovalchuk. Meaning, it ain't happening. At least not THIS contract. Here's the statement from deputy commissioner Bill Daly:

Bill Daly wrote:The contract has been rejected by the League as a circumvention of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Under the CBA, the contract rejection triggers a number of possible next steps that may be elected by any or each of the NHLPA, the Player and/or the Club. In the interim, the player is not entitled to play under the contract, nor is he entitled to any of the rights and benefits that are provided for thereunder. The League will have no further comment on this matter pending further developments.

As you can imagine this brings much dissapointment to the Devils, who were extremely excited to have Kovy a Devil for life. Here's the statement from Devils GM Lou Lamoriello:

Lou Lamoriello wrote:We are extremely disappointed that the NHL has decided to reject the contract of Ilya Kovalchuk. The contract complies with the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. We will have no further comment until the process outlined in the CBA is complete

So what happens next? Will the Devils offer another contract? Will Kovy shake it off and sign elsewhere? I believe the Devils will do anything they can to get him to sign (again), but whether or not it's even possible to renegotioate is something we'll find out soon.

I'm not all that sure how the CBA works in situations like this, they might be able to keep the same contract alive if it follows some sort of process but once again I'm not all that sure.