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2010 NHL Free Agency: NJ Devils report that they re-signed Ilya Kovalchuk

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It looks like our long hockey nightmare is over.

Less than an hour after Ilya Kovalchuk’s agent Jay Grossman said the winger would make his decision “for sure this time” today, the New Jersey Devils’ official Twitter account announced that he would be a member of their team. Here’s a screen capture of the Tweet for posterity.

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Obviously it’s early on and the team said it will announce the signing on Tuesday, so financial terms might be a little slim for a bit. Devils beat writer Tom Gulitti confirmed the team report, if that helps you sleep at night/at your cubicle right now. Our Joe Yerdon also backs it up after Grossman’s Puck Agency put up a story on the subject, too.

While some think of it as a “kick to the nuts” for Los Angeles Kings fans, it will all come down to how much money drops into Kovalchuk’s lap. The elite sniper will come at a cost to the Devils, no doubt about it, and some think that he might even make it difficult for the team to retain its other talented left winger Zach Parise.

Naturally, we’ll update you with more information on the Kovalchuk signing as information comes through. That will include a look at the salary cap impact, what the signing will mean for the balance of power in the Eastern Conference and Atlantic division and more. We’ll also keep an eye on possible “domino effect” signings as the Alex Frolovs of the world make their decisions. Stay tuned, hockey fans.