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Over the last week or so there's been talk Ilya Kovalchuk may not return to the NHL this summer.
The theory behind the rumors was that Kovalchuk wanted to play for Russia at next year's Olympics and by staying put he'd be eligible to do so.
Those rumors were put to rest last night when
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported Kovalchuk "is still very much interested in playing in the NHL next season."
Where he ends up remains to be seen but it would seem there are plenty of options.
Friedman mentioned the San Jose Sharks, who I've said make a lot of sense since Day 1 (Kovalchuk thrived under Pete DeBoer), the St. Louis Blues (they want another scorer and have the Martin Brodeur connection) and the Toronto Maple Leafs (Lou Lamoriello connection) as possibilities.
Larry Brooks reported those same three teams, as well as a few others, are interested in the 34-year-old Russian.
Slap Shots has learned the Blues (with assistant general manager Martin Brodeur), Maple Leafs (with general manager Lou Lamoriello) and Sharks (with coach Pete DeBoer and assistant Johan Hedberg) are among more than a half-dozen clubs who have expressed interest in Kovalchuk.
And yes, indeed, the Rangers are one of those teams, though there are obstacles to work around in order to get the potential game-changer into a Blueshirt.
It's tough to gauge exactly how much Devils GM Ray Shero will be able to fetch for Kovalchuk given the circumstances -- we haven't seen anything like this before -- but Brooks speculated Oscar Lindberg and Nick Holden could be sent the Devils' way if a deal between the rivals ever came to fruition.
I do like Lindberg -- his rate stats suggest he'd put up pretty good scoring numbers if given more minutes (similar to Kyle Palmieri, but maybe not to that extent) -- but I don't think a lot of Nick Holden even though he's coming off a pretty good offensive season.
I also don't see the Devils giving the Rangers a player of Kovalchuk's caliber, should the Rangers somehow make enough cap room for him, unless the return is significant. I wouldn't say the proposed deal qualifies, especially considering the Rangers may end up exposing Lindberg.
Nevertheless, the Rangers being involved is a good thing. If not anything else, the extra suitor could help Shero drive up the price and fetch a better return.
It's going to be fun watching this play out in the coming weeks.
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