Kovalchuk dealt to New Jersey in sad, expected ending
Here's Ilya Kovalchuk going against the Devils' Johnny Oduya. Just switch the uniforms now.
This is generally how these things end. A star goes one way. A large package of some undetermined substance and quality goes the other.
This isn’t a new practice with the Thrashers, just an evolving one. The names keep getting bigger. Dealing Ray Ferraro and Jiri Slegr in the early days came with limited blowback. They were late in their careers. But then another impending free agent, Donald Audette, couldn’t come to terms and was traded to Montreal for an obscure prospect named Kamil Piros. (Unfortunate early analysis from then-coach Curt Fraser: “The greatest player in Czechoslovakia.”). Then Marian Hossa wouldn’t re-sign and was dealt to Pittsburgh.
Now it’s Ilya Kovalchuk’s turn.
This isn’t just a trend any more. It’s a disturbing franchise trait, with no sign of change in sight.
Kovalchuk was traded Thursday night to New Jersey. His exit was predictable since last season, when the team struggled (again), failed to amend for past mistakes (again), failed to accurately gauge the market (again) and in the end was forced to desperately deal him for another questionable package of players and prospects. It’s a nice trade-up for Kovalchuk. He goes from a franchise that has never won a playoff game to one that has won three Stanley Cups, four conference championships and nine division titles since 1994-95.
Lou Lamoriello, the Devils’ general manager, doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. Don Waddell? He has been the architect of disaster central in Atlanta since Day 1. Anybody want to venture how this one turns out?
“I don’t think it sets us back at all,” Waddell said after the deal. “I think it moves us forward.”
Yes. He really said that.
It’s another quantity-for-quality trade. That’s the way these things work. The Devils get Kovalchuk, Atlanta’s all-time leading scorer (328 goals, 615 points, in 594 games) and defenseman Anssi Salmela. The Thrashers get right wing Niclas Bergfors, defenseman Johnny Oduya, troubled prospect Patrice Cormier and a first-round draft pick. The teams also will swap second-round draft picks.
Bergfors? A nice young player, hardly a star (27 points in 54 games). Oduya? A solid puck-moving defenseman. Cormier? A train wreck. He elbowed a player in the Quebec juniors, sending himto the hospital, and has been suspended for the season. The No. 1 pick? Maybe this one works out. And stays.
At least Waddell didn’t slam Kovalchuk going out the door. He was given a chance to say Kovalchuk only cares about money. Instead, he reiterated what Kovalchuk has been saying all along (the screams of short-sighted critics notwithstanding): “I think, Kovy right to the last day, wanted to be a Thrasher. But it’s a business decision.”
Waddell knew he would get slammed for this. Earlier Thursday, in hopes of swaying public opinion, he released a statement including some of the team’s contract offers to Kovalchuk. But the offers — $70 million over seven years ($10 million per year) and $101 million for 12 years ($8.42 average) — already had appeared in Wednesday’s Journal-Constitution. So his intended thunder was muted.
It never should have come to this. Kovalchuk is one of the NHL’s few elite players and has been since he entered the league in 2001. He’s on pace to score 40-plus goals for the sixth consecutive season. That’s a rare commodity in the NHL. But he has been frustrated by the team’s lack of success. The Thrashers have reached the postseason once. Attendance has declined. Concern over the club’s future fed into Kovalchuk’s desire to ask for the maximum salary allowed by the collective bargaining agreement: $11.3 million per season for 10 to 12 years. He asked for the only thing he felt he could control, and he had the leverage of unrestricted free agency. Unless he immediately signs an extension with the Devils, Kovalchuk will become the highest-profile unrestricted free agent in his prime in NHL history.
It’s another ugly ending. Two years ago, it was Hossa. He went to Pittsburgh, and the Thrashers celebrated the package they got back. But look at it now: Colby Armstrong (third-line winger, impending free agent), Erik Christensen (washed out), Angelo Esposito (flawed prospect) a No. 1 pick (Daultan Leveille, Michigan State).
Maybe this deal turns out better. But history tells us otherwise. Another star was just shipped out of town. This is where we came in.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
453 comments Add your comment
Tony C.
February 4th, 2010
10:28 pm
Well, now that ATL officially has committed to minor-league hockey, I can go back to rooting for the Devils (my adopted team before ‘99).
It’s a shame how poor ownership and management have betrayed the ATL hockey fan AGAIN.
Ryno
February 4th, 2010
10:28 pm
Maybe when the new guys are introduced, Cormier can swing a big elbow at Waddell’s empty head. The one or two media guys in attendance could be heard yelling “Finish Him!”
Wreckmaniac
February 4th, 2010
10:29 pm
Why the surprise ? This story was written the day Heatly had his infamous wreck.
Gwinnett Fred
February 4th, 2010
10:29 pm
If you want to be eternally optimistic – maybe indeed nobody out there will meet Kovy’s outrageous demands and he comes to his senses and accepts the last Thrash offer – assuming the owners didn’t thank God he didn’t take it and have pulled it off the table
David
February 4th, 2010
10:30 pm
When front office or ownership can not work out deals for players on the team, most likely that team will not make the playoffs. The Atlanta Thrashers in a brief history is a perfect example of a team lack of proven ownership and front office causing this team from making the playoffs every year. They need a strong formation here one that will bring fan in the arena, and proven ownership that wants to win the cup. The front office and ownership of this hockey team goals are not the same as Detroit, Pittsburgh, or any other team that makes the playoffs every year, they perfer to ruin this team for years to come and make excuses why they do not make the playoffs. Atlanta, please get rid of this type of ownership!!!
Wreckmaniac
February 4th, 2010
10:31 pm
Did Waddell run this years UGA football recruiting ?
CJ
February 4th, 2010
10:31 pm
Again, I’m not beefing with Kovy here…the guy saw a way out of this train wreck of a franchise and got out…Happy Trails to you…
But with all of this wondersul money that we’re saving and can use to give to other players you forget that the man charged with distributing that money is the same man that has built NOTHING for the last ten years. Some people’s rationale in this is that they would rather have a cherry picking/40% defensively responsible superstar on their team than to have that money spent by Waddell on a whole bunch of nothing in the hometeam jersey…
Mike in Savannah
February 4th, 2010
10:31 pm
You know, I was willing to allow myself to believe this trade could have been beneficial for Atlanta, until the details of the trade were released. On the cusp of a second playoff birth, Waddell has already thrown in the towel getting nothing in return for perhaps one of greatest goal scorers the NHL will ever see. I was holding out hope that Atlanta would have gotten a good player at least. But no, Waddell settled for players who barely play or they are invisible while they are on the ice. And tell what the benefits were of throwing Salmella in the mix? Are you telling me our GM couldn’t have gotten this trade done without throwing him in there? WTF Waddell? WTF are you thinking? HOW IN THE HELL IS THIS MAN STILL THE GM???? I’m done with this team until that fat bastard is gone!!!
mike
February 4th, 2010
10:31 pm
im not very up on hockey.. but is this the equivalent of stan kasten trading nique for danny manning in 1993?
cliohemp
February 4th, 2010
10:31 pm
I’ve watched Don Waddell pretend to be a NCAA hockey player,he sucked.
The only thing that made him successful in Detroit was working with Scotty Bowman. He proved again tonight that he doesn’t have the ability to be a NHL exec. The only thing that he has succeeded at was selling portable toilets.
John
February 4th, 2010
10:32 pm
funny how everyone is saying he isn’t worth the $$ yet, less then 2 days after we let it be known he will be traded we have teams lining uo fo him. Let me see who has a better chance of winning this deal…the thrashers-losers on the ice and with attendance or The Devils 14 years straight in the playoffs with stanley cup rings. Anyone who thinks the Thrashers is an obvious SEASON TICKET SUCKER with Blueberry colored glasses. I will continue buying tickets for $10 and sitting in the empties until the team is GONE!!!!
Wreckmaniac
February 4th, 2010
10:33 pm
Can we now get serious and bring back the Knights ?
drano
February 4th, 2010
10:34 pm
James Brown – You don’t understand the “Jersey System”, but don’t feel bad, many people don’t. Alex Mogilny fit in just fine, plopped in 40+ goals and reached the Cup finals two straight years. I’ve been watching the Devs since ‘82 when they came to the Garden State. I understand how the team plays. You don’t even understand that the NY Press doesn’t really cover the Devs all that much. Sure, they will tonight when they speak of how they robbed your GM with one quality NHLer (Oduya – but he isn’t nearly as good as he was last year) for a rare sort of player that makes a quality team all that much better. I understand how you must be feeling right now, though, and it makes sense that you would lash out at me. Like I said, I feel for ya Atlanta.
Kane337
February 4th, 2010
10:34 pm
This sux. Every single Thrashers star has wanted their way out of town. Why is this? Is it the fanbase or the organization? Or both?
JJ
February 4th, 2010
10:35 pm
Another great trade. We got no one good in this deal. I would have rather keep Kovy then trade him for the guys we got. At least we would have a shot at playoffs if we keep Kovy. We can’t sell out a game and you think it is going to get better. I wonder if the owner’s think this is a great trade. All they are worried about is the Atlanta Hawks.
Wreckmaniac
February 4th, 2010
10:36 pm
This may even be the equivalent of the (dare I say it) Len Barker for
Brett Butler trade. Many readers will not know anything about this but it was and has continued to be, until possibly now, the most infamous trade in the history of Atl sports.
EA
February 4th, 2010
10:37 pm
I will be there Saturday night to support the rest of the players. No team is one player even if it is Ilya Kovalchuk.
BLUELANDjustMELTED
February 4th, 2010
10:38 pm
The lousy trade for Kovy is the ultimate demise of this organization and NHL in Atlanta! I guess he was Atlanta’s hockey version of “The Great Bambino.” I guess Waddell is getting paid big bux to play “FANTASY HOCKEY” in the front office. Don Waddell should have been fired years ago!! He’s pathetic and has ruined hockey for this City. Since ‘07, this organization has failed to produce a Playoff/Winning franchise. Just look at the Thrashers’ practice facility, it’s a dump! I play hockey there and cannot believe an NHL team is practicing at that place.
Furthermore, the “suits” (who care more about arguing over their ownership in court) have failed at keeping “cheeks in the seats.” Carolina and Nashville are doing things right, yet the largest city in the South proves once again at how much of a lacklaster sports city Atlanta truly is. Detroit is broke, yet every game is sold out. The Thrashers have had great hockey players since ‘99, the majority have gone on to other teams and become All-Stars.
Well, I’m a Chicago-transplant and really became “TRUE BLUE.” Before I left the Windy City, I vowed never to root for the HAWKS because the old Wirtz regime in Chi-town ruined hockey for the city. However, the Hawks have had a “Renaissance” in the past few years. Old man Wirtz died, his son took over and transformed the Hawks and acquired John McDonough as President and former NHLer and Blackhawk Dale Tallon as GM. Thrashers take note.
One appearance in the Playoffs was great for the Thrashers. But in order to become a Southeastern and NHL Powerhouse its time to get rid of the “old regime” that has penalized this team as a top contender. Heck, Widespread Panic has more sellouts at Philips than the Thrashers, just look at the banner at the rink!!!! Getting rid of Kovy, Hoss, Savvy (just to name a few) isn’t gonna bring Lord Stanley to the ATL. They should’ve gotten rid of “Groin Pull” Lehtonen, what a waste of money he is…I’m off the soap box and gonna log onto chicagoblackhawks.com. Have fun melting away in Blueland fans, I feel bad for you guys who really are true Thrash fans
Jeff Schultz
February 4th, 2010
10:39 pm
FOLKS — haven’t had a chance to wade through comments because I’ve been doing several rewrites. But last re-write is now posted. And how about this quote from Don Waddell: “I don’t think it sets us back at all. I think it moves us forward.”
Supes
February 4th, 2010
10:45 pm
Don Waddell: “I don’t think it sets us back at all. I think it moves us forward.”
Jeff, is this for REAL?
Unbelievable!
Worst possible trade for the Thrashers, but it should have never gotten to that point. If this team had an owner that actually PUT money and CARED about the success of the team.
I believe in Sweet Lou
February 4th, 2010
10:47 pm
@Kane337 – you guys need to support your team if you are going to hold onto players. While yes, you would support a winner, but who doesn’t? You have to support a team when they are losing too. You guys have had a team this year that has been in the playoff chase the whole season yet your arena is only sold out when Northern teams come to town. That’s not exactly what I call supporting a winner. That is not a recipe for holding onto the Hossas and Kovalchuks of the league either.
CobbThrasher
February 4th, 2010
10:48 pm
Wow Jeff, did he really say that? I think Donnie has a future in politics. He’s as out of touch with his fan base as the idots in Washington are with…..well, you know.
Ex-Kovy Fan
February 4th, 2010
10:48 pm
Drano, don’t get too confident. Remember, you got knocked out in the first round last year by Carolina. Sincerely, Atlanta
uberVU - social comments
February 4th, 2010
10:48 pm
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Twitter by JeffSchultzAJC: First Kovalchuk trade details: http://bit.ly/dljWsq…
c.j.
February 4th, 2010
10:48 pm
Just in, Don Waddell was named President Obama’s Hockey Czar
Still love the Thrash
February 4th, 2010
10:49 pm
First to make a positive comment. At least we’ll get a top 5 pick again. haha
vinny
February 4th, 2010
10:49 pm
Here is how the negotiations went. The offer is 100 million with one condition,, whats that. Next year you will be playing in Winnipeg,,.. Nooooooo Wayyyyyy!!!!!
sad to see it end in Atlanta but with the economy as it is and so much for sports fans to enjoy in Atlanta the trucks are warming up for the drive north.
Wreckmaniac
February 4th, 2010
10:49 pm
I feel like I’m reading the UGA football blog
Kane337
February 4th, 2010
10:49 pm
Can we trade Don Waddell too? I wonder if New Jersey would take Don for their Zamboni driver in an even swap.
drano
February 4th, 2010
10:51 pm
For you guys wondering about what you got…
Bergfors – not a BAD player, but nothing to be too excited about. He spent four years in the minors (Albany/Lowell) and finally got a chance to be an everyday player in Jersey when the Devs let Shanahan go after the preseason. He is 5th in scoring for all rookies, but he got most of those when he was on a line with Zajac and Parise (I could score 15 goals on a line with those guys). He has one goal in the past 13 or 14 games. I would say he is a career 3rd liner – maybe a 2nd liner on a weak team. He’s a Swede but was not named to the Olympic team.
Oduya – solid d-man. He had a great season last year and cashed in with a 3 yr/$10.5 mil contract this past summer. This year, he’s had a groin injury but hasn’t been nearly as good as he was last year. I think he has a goal and 4 points on the season. He’s supposed to play for Sweden at the Olympics. Oduya was signed as a free agent a few years ago. He was originally drafted by the Caps but they never signed him and he played pro hockey in Sweden before the Devs brought him over. His dad is Nigerian, his mom is Swedish – he’s a Swedish national.
Cormier – don’t really know too much about this kid (except his elbow). I saw a few of the Canada games at the WJC this year and he seems like he should be a decent NHLer – provided he keep his temper under control. He was the captain of Team Canada at the WJC. He was scoring a point a game (11-20-31 in 31 games) for his junior team before being suspended for the remainder of the year because of the aforementioned elbow. The Devils had no plans to try to have him play in Lowell (AHL), but the Thrashers may look at it differently and assign him to their minor team. He signed a 3 year entry level contract over the summer.
!st round pick – Jersey also swapped 2nd with Atlanta, meaning that the swap was really something like Pick 26 for Pick 36. Not a big deal as the drop off in talent after #20 is usually swift and then levels off (meaning that #26 and #36 have nearly the same chance of being solid NHLers).
CJ
February 4th, 2010
10:52 pm
Ha! Just ran the Don Waddell interview on Fox and then ran a Gwinnett Gladiators ad right behind it…seems that Fox knows that we’ll shortly be left with nothing but the mighty ECHL (snore) in the metro area.
Old Time Hockey
February 4th, 2010
10:53 pm
Odouya and 3 first rounders for 27 games. I loved watching Ilya but he is NOT a max cap player. He would not come down off that and forced the trade. Time will tell if this is a step forward or back. If they embrace Anderson’s system and play as a balanced team, they might surprise. All depends on the goaltending. Be lucky to get a dozen water bottles for the fat goalie.
HF
February 4th, 2010
10:54 pm
You all will be crying in your beer if your boycott of hockey leads to the team leaving in the future. Who wants to play in a city where fans are boycotting the sport? Besides where was Kovalchuk’s loyalty to the fans? I have yet to hear him utter a word aboout the fans. All I have heard is money, money, and me.
Brendan
February 4th, 2010
10:57 pm
Jeff Schultz, will you please call for Waddell’s head on a pike in the morning paper? No, I’m not kidding, either. This franchise is starting to make Mike Milbury’s Islanders look good.
Look at all the talent that came and went. Audette, Brunette, Staios, Heatley, Hossa, Kaberle, Pothier, Donovan, Coburn, and Kovalchuk. And really, is Kari Lehtonen staying? He might be gone, too. And if it happens, what WERE those “lottery draft picks” about?
1999: Stefan (bust, traded for Niko Kapanen and Will O’Neil).
2000: Heatley, traded for Hossa and deVries. Both gone, with Eric O’Dell, Daultan Leveille, Angelo Esposito and pending UFA Colby Armstrong to show for it, after a trade with Pittsburgh in 2008.
2001: Ilya Kovalchuk, traded for Oduya, Bergfors, Cormier, and a 1st round pick, plus a LESSER 2nd round pick.
2002: Kari Lehtonen – perpetually injured and mentally unstable, combined with immaturity of character
2003: Coburn, traded for Zhitnik, since boughtout.
2004: Boris Valabik, a 5th/6th defender, from the 10th overall draft position
2005: Alex Bourret, traded to NY Rangers for Pascal Dupuis + 3rd round pick. Dupuis was packaged with Hossa, and is perhaps best described as Colby Armstrong today. The 3rd round pick is now Chris Thorburn, a 4th line forward. Meanwhile, the originally held 8th overall pick was traded to SJ, who selected Devin Setoguchi. Atlanta picked up Chad Denny, still in ECHL, with the 2nd pick they received for moving to #12 overall. At #12 overall, Atlanta traded to NY Rangers, who selected Marc Staal. Atlanta picked up a 2nd round pick, who was converted into goaltender Ondrej Pavelec. Moving right along
2006: Bryan Little – Very promising center, pushed to the wing, now underperforming because of it. Little is a pending RFA
2007: 1st and 3rd deal for “Tkachuk rental.” 2nd round pick dealt for Vitaly Vishnevski, moved at 2007 trade deadline for Center Eric Belanger, who walked in free agency.
2008: Zach Bogosian – See Heatley/Coburn/Kovalchuk for future with team.
2009: Evander Kane – See Heatley/Coburn/Kovalchuk for future with team.
2010: Atlanta will probably pick 8th. With the NJ pick, they may be picking 20th – 24th overall.
What’s it all add up to? A headache. In its most simplistic form, it comes down to one (1) division championship, four (4) playoff games, and zero (0) playoff wins. What’s the point of hanging on to Waddell. Each and every blogger here … has just as many playoff wins to their credit as Waddell has, and we could have been bought for LESS than $900,000-a-year, which is about what Waddell makes.
C’est absoluement incroyable et insupportable. Honestly, if we spun a wheel … with possible choices for trades … “Maggie, The Monkey” might have done better over the past decade.
madame cormier
February 4th, 2010
11:01 pm
Allo, dis is da mom of Patrice, eee toll meee dat ee want to go to Hatlanta for da ockey. Isss Henglish is not so good so maybe you ave da game in french. maybe da teqm she go to kaybec da year next where da fan she is good.
I believe in Sweet Lou
February 4th, 2010
11:02 pm
Kovalchuk was tired of playing in front of 5,000 fans so he forced this trade. Anyone who didn’t see him forcing his way out of Atlanta hasn’t been to another arena. Now he can get what Ovechkin can’t – a Stanley Cup. Brodeur is healthy and Ilya will form a perfect 1-2 punch with Parise. Watch how inspired Ilya gets playing in front of our crowds. He will play defense for us.
Matt the Brave
February 4th, 2010
11:02 pm
And starting for your Kansas City Thrashers….
That’s where it’s heading folks. T-2 years to a move.
Praveen
February 4th, 2010
11:05 pm
Wow, as a Pens fan, this makes the Hossa trade look relatively not so bad for Wadell. Aargh, it doesn’t even look like Devils had to give up even a single top prospect in return. He might have just given the Devils a much better chance of getting the cup against the Caps and Pens from the East.
And yes, fan from Warner Robins, this is how Pirates fans feel. Thrashers are not as awful as the Pirates(at least you made the playoffs once), but damn, this must suck for you guys.
Damn, I wish they could have at least gotten one impact player from the DEvils. This is not as awful sa when Jagr was unloaded to the Caps and not a single prospect panned out even to a decent 3rd line career in the NHL. BUt it is not good.
Hey Matt
February 4th, 2010
11:06 pm
T-6 months is more like it
Matt the Brave
February 4th, 2010
11:07 pm
Hey Brenden, the reason that the ownership group doesn’t fire Waddell is because they can’t hire anyone else for as cheaply, nor will they pay the buyout for firing him. The best hope for Atlanta hockey came down when they could have let him walk, but they decided to resign him. If the Thrashers move, then we will never see major league hockey in the ATL again.
I believe in Sweet Lou
February 4th, 2010
11:07 pm
You guys have been in the playoff chase all year and you don’t support your team. Blame the GM all you want, if you don’t show up to the games when the team is holding one of the playoff seeds you will continue to see players skip town.
Devils Fan
February 4th, 2010
11:08 pm
A little input on the players you got.
Bergfors is a quick young Swede who got in Lemaires doghouse for taking long shifts. He still has a lot to learn defensively but has the talent to be a consistent 20+ goal scorer. He is good enough now to make the Swedish Olympic team but didn’t make the cut because he wasn’t on their radar and therefore didn’t get the required drug testing that they start about a year before the games start. He is good along the boards. He has had a history of shoulder injuries while in the minors which probably delayed his entrance into he NHL.
Oduya is curious case. He is a VERY good skater. Good 5on5. Can play on the PP and is a good penalty killer. Sometimes he just explodes with his speed. He started out slow this season, got hurt, came back and now his game is starting to get back to the point where it was last season when us Devils fans were affectionately calling him Johnny Orr-duya and Lou made it a priority to sign him while letting Brian Gionta and John Madden walk.
Haven’t seen Cormier live but Lemaire really liked him in training camp.
As for us Devils fans, this is only a good trade if we win the cup. Good luck to you guys.
PMC
February 4th, 2010
11:08 pm
How does Don Waddell form his mouth to make those comments or pen those words?
Vallium? Lithium? He should be shackled from head to toe in a strait jacket and headed to Milledgeville if he even halfway believes the words being attributed to him.
When something amazing happens and the man drafts talent he finds a way to run them off on a desperate attempt at less than mediocrity.
Maybe he moonlights at AIG
boom boom still rules
February 4th, 2010
11:08 pm
Brendan, Nice walkthrough of the drafting history and ineptitude. As I’ve mentioned before, the Trash are the Clippers of hockey. They could draft Jesus himself and he’d pull a groin in training camp and be out for the season, only to be traded later for prospects.
SEA
February 4th, 2010
11:08 pm
Are the same people who are outraged about Kovy not signing the same ones who refused to go to a hockey game? Face it folks, attendance was a factor in his decision to leave. He never missed an opportunity to comment on a big crowd or ask fans to come support the team.
PMC
February 4th, 2010
11:09 pm
Go Devils I guess.
c.j.
February 4th, 2010
11:09 pm
Hey, Terrell Owens is looking for a job as a winger, since he already achieved the best receiver in football status.
Don Waddell, I see a spot for you on every single urinal puck in Atlanta.
confused
February 4th, 2010
11:10 pm
this is pretty pointed, Shultzie. The only real complaint should be that he was traded to an Eastern division team, eerily similar to Frenchy to the Mets, although with greater probable consequences. But really what were the Thrashers to do at this point? They offered him over $100 million dollars (that’s winning the lottery) but that wasn’t going to be enough.
I don’t know….I guess I am saying I don’t think that it’s the ownership’s fault that Atlanta isn’t Detroit or Philly or Chicago or St. Louis or N.Y. and even if you bring the superstar to town you aren’t going to sell enough tickets to resign that superstar when his contract is up.
NJDevil2010
February 4th, 2010
11:10 pm
First off, as a Devs season ticket holder since 82, I can only say that I’m truly excited to see Kovy suit up in the red and black. The Devs have changed dramatically in the past years and are NOT the same team who played the neutral zone trap of the mid/late 90s. Forwards are encouraged to be creative and take chances if they think they can generate realistic scoring chances. Kovy will fit in very well, and could be the missing component to help the Devs make a serious challenge for the Cup. I mean, come on, the guy’s a total witch on the ice…..scoring 40+ without (no offense) a huge supporting cast. I’ve seen him pot more than a few against Marty, so it’ll be nice to see him do it against other teams in the East.
Sorry to the ATL fans on this one. You’re getting some decent talent as drano above says, but I’ll ALWAYS take the bonafide star over the prospects. Bird in the hand and all….now I just hope we can lock him up long term. Waddell seriously fumbled on this one.
Mike
February 4th, 2010
11:12 pm
Smoke that bonk Don