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PHT’s top 13 of ’13: Kovalchuk retires, returns to KHL

Russian hockey player for the New Jersey Devils, Kovalchuk, skates during a team training session at the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki

Russian hockey player for the New Jersey Devils, Ilya Kovalchuk, skates during a team training session at the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki, May 2, 2013. Russia will face Latvia in their opening game at the Ice Hockey World Championships in Helsinki on Saturday. REUTERS/Grigory Dukor (FINLAND - Tags: SPORT ICE HOCKEY)

REUTERS

Ilya Kovalchuk was supposed to be a Devil for the rest of his career. He was one of the team’s best forwards and poised to stay in New Jersey for the duration of his 15-year deal.

But in 2013, the plan changed. After a lockout-shortened campaign that saw him deal with injury and finish second on the team in points, he called it “probably my worst season,” then stunned the hockey world by retiring from the NHL in June.

Kovalchuk’s retirement didn’t mean he was walking away from the game itself. Rather, he was bailing on the Devils to go play back home in the KHL.

He forfeited the remainder of his $100 million contract to play for the team he suited up for during the lockout – SKA St. Petersburg. Kovalchuk’s mother said his time with SKA during the lockout inspired him to find a way to return, which he did in dramatic fashion.

Of course, he had to make sure the Devils would allow him to go. And asking the team to be OK with parting ways had to be some kind of awkward, especially after all they went through to get him. When the Devils were negotiating with Kovalchuk during the summer of 2010, they were busted for circumventing the salary cap on their first agreed-upon deal. Their punishment? Forfeiting a future first-round pick, a punishment that will come into effect at the 2014 NHL Draft.

So, what was the Devils’ motivation to part ways with Kovalchuk?

For one, they were in a financial bind as the salary cap was reduced to $64.3 million following the lockout-shortened season. They were also dealing with cash-flow issues, as then-owner Jeff Vanderbeek was seeking to sell the team. Having Kovalchuk’s monster contract on the books made both those situations more difficult.

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NEWARK, NJ - JULY 19: President/CEO/General Manager Lou Lamoriello of the New Jersey Devils addresses the media after introducing Peter DeBoer (not pictured) as the new head coach of the New Jersey Devils at a press conference on July 19, 2011 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Andy Marlin/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Lamoriello agreed to let Kovalchuk go and with it controversy erupted over the Devils finding a way (again) to escape the clutches of the upper limit of the salary cap. Months later, Vanderbeek sold the team to a group led by Joshua Harris.

With Kovalchuk off the books and on his way to Russia, the Devils suddenly had money to spend -- and did so by signing Jaromir Jagr and Damien Brunner to free-agent deals.

Jagr alone has helped make people forget about Kovalchuk leaving town with his handling of the press and, oh yeah, his ability to keep scoring at age 41.

As for Kovalchuk, life is good for him in Russia. SKA named him team captain and he’s essentially the face of the KHL. He’s currently eighth in the league in points, averaging over a point per game.

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