Ilya Kovalchuk's 17-Year Contract Rejected by NHL

Filed under: Devils, NHL Free Agency, NHL EconomicsJust when it appeared to be all over and behind us, the Ilya Kovalchuk free agency saga took another absurd turn on Tuesday night. Hours after the New Jersey Devils held a press conference to officially announce the signing of Kovalchuk's record 17-year contract, TSN reported that the NHL has rejected the deal for salary cap circumvention.

The contract, which would have paid Kovalchuk $102 million over the 17 years, was heavily front-loaded (like many of the double-digit year contracts signed over the years) to create a smaller salary cap figure (total dollars divided by total years). As previously constructed, the deal would have carried a $6 million per year cap hit, which is quite small for one of the NHL's best and most dangerous goal-scorers.

It also would have kept him under contract until his 44th birthday after the 2026-27 season.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly explained the rejection on Wednesday: "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."Shaq Derek Jeter Kyle Busch Dario Franchitti