Ilya Kovalchuk is officially an unrestricted free agent. After clearing waivers on Tuesday, he’s free to sign wherever he’d like and speculation is that he’ll do so with a contender.
The Los Angeles Kings placed Kovalchuk on waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. Stuck with his cap hit because he signed with the team after he’d turned 35 years old, the Kings decided he wasn’t worth the effort. Now, another team will have the chance to see if they could do with Kovalchuk what the Kings couldn’t.
Early reports of interested teams are sketchy but one club looks to be poking around. The Boston Bruins, who were earlier rumored to be interested before Kovalchuk signed with the Kings are speculated to have interest once again. That report was broken by Igor Eronko early Tuesday morning.
This, of course, will be met with mixed reaction by Bruins fans. Many of them won’t love the idea of adding an aged forward who has shown he might not have what it takes to contribute to the NHL any longer. Others will suggest he could find his groove and the Bruins are a top-heavy team who could use some inexpensive depth at forward.
A power play specialist who can shoot the puck, it would be shocking if other teams didn’t at least inquire into Kovalchuk’s services considering he’s willing to sign with a contender for league minimum.
If no one comes calling, he could go back to the KHL where it’s rumored he has a lucrative offer on the table. He doesn’t want to leave the NHL but if the Bruins decide against bringing him in and no other team takes a flyer on him, he might not have much of a choice.
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