It has been reported that NHL mediator, Richard Block, has sided with the NHL and against the NHLPA’s suite filed for Ilya Kovalchuk.
The controversial, 17-year, $102 million contract with the New Jersey Devils went to arbitration after the NHL rejected the front loaded nature of the contract. The league initially denied the contract, stating it circumvented the salary cap. At the heart of the issue were the final five years, paid at the salary cap minimum of $550,000 and having the contract expire when Ilya Kovalchuk was 44 years old (contract details).
The ruling means that Kovalchuk will return to being an unrestricted free agent, allowing any NHL (or KHL) team to sign him. Furthermore following the arbitrator’s ruling, the Devil’s are in jeopardy of being fined up to $5 million, and/or stripped of future draft picks, though neither are likely.
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