Confirmed with Link: Kings announce signing kovalchuk to 3 year contract.

[yankeeking]

Come on guys it was just no way Tavares comes here and now it's kovy cost us Tavares lol

 

[WHOneedsSOX]

The kings were never signing Tavares.

So how do we afford this? Who goes?

Reider for sure. That's probably it. Think the Kings had about $8 million in cap space.

Dustin Brown put up 61 points and 28 goals last year.

I've got a feeling Ilya Kovalchuk who was one of the best pure goal scorers before he left the NHL will do just fine here.

Only thing that would hold him back from doing that is injury or effort. Guy isn't exactly the hardest worker when the going gets tough.

 

[regulate]

While I don't think we were expecting 3 years, this is an excellent move. Leading scorer in the KHL, MVP in the Olympics and still and excellent skater, the Kings have been scouting him and he's still got a lot of game left. For reference (regarding the Marleau deal) while it's the same term and years, the Marleau contract covers his seasons when he is 38, 39 and 40. Kovalchuk's is 35 (just turned), 36 and 37. So his deal will be complete before Marleau's even started age wise. Kopi having a sniper on his wing is outstanding news!

 

[johnjm22]

I respect your opinion john, but I think if he averages 20 goals a season the Kings overpaid by a significant amount.

Spending 6.25 mil on 50 pts is the definition of poor asset management. That's a bad deal.

I'm not so sure. 6M+ seems like the going rate for a top 6 forward these days.

I'm looking at it from a perspective of lowered expectations. If he produces 20g/50p a season that means he's not a bust. I would be relieved and pretty happy with that.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Gee, I wonder who would be a better option for Kopitar to play with on his LW, Alex Iafallo, or Ilya Kovalchuk? Come on guys. Get a grip.

 

[DryIslandBartender]

Now can we bring over Voynov?

 

[regulate]

If Kovalchuk scores 60 goals and 150 points over the course of the next 3 seasons we should be pretty happy with his production.

I predict if he stays healthy he does better than that. What I love about HF is we can go back later and check. I'm pretty happy about this deal. And the draft has been excellent so far too.

 

[WHOneedsSOX]

Now can we bring over Voynov?

I doubt the Kings can even afford him anymore. I doubt he would've been willing to sign the same $4 million a year deal. Most likely looking for $5.5-6 million a year.

 

[Bandit]

Reider for sure. That's probably it. Think the Kings had about $8 million in cap space.

Only thing that would hold him back from doing that is injury or effort. Guy isn't exactly the hardest worker when the going gets tough.

That's this year, but what about the other two and needing to extend Doughty?

Also, Nigel Dawes lead the KHL in goals last year? Oof.

 

[lexlavender]

I've said this before, but if Voynov is cleared to play again, the Kings hold literally all the cards in contract negotiations. I bet you could sign him for league minimum, 1 yr.

 

[Shellz]

Now can we bring over Voynov?

Him and Kovy will be on a flight headed here (E4)

 

[The Butcher]

Gee, I wonder who would be a better option for Kopitar to play with on his LW, Alex Iafallo, or Ilya Kovalchuk? Come on guys. Get a grip.

Is it really that obvious?

A 28 year old Kovalchuk, no question.

Iafallo has a beating heart, at least he has that going for him but yes, I'll reluctantly admit a 35 year old Kovalchuk is the better linemate for powerplay and offensive situations.

 

[lexlavender]

That's this year, but what about the other two and needing to extend Doughty?

Also, Nigel Dawes lead the KHL in goals last year? Oof.

Honestly, if you sign Doughty for 10 mil or a little more, it's not too hard to manage. The cap increases over the next few years will really help.

 

[WHOneedsSOX]

That's this year, but what about the other two and needing to extend Doughty?

Also, Nigel Dawes lead the KHL in goals last year? Oof.

Cap goes up another $4 million and there you go. Worst case you trade Clifford or Lewis if needed. Thompson's cap hit also comes off after this coming season.

 

[WHOneedsSOX]

I've said this before, but if Voynov is cleared to play again, the Kings hold literally all the cards in contract negotiations. I bet you could sign him for league minimum, 1 yr.

I doubt that. He'd just sit out another year and then come back in 2019 when he'll be free to sign anywhere he wants.

 

[kings11]

Definitely need Kovalchuk to be a 30-goal / 65-point player for all three years for this to make sense. It feels like we are going back in time. This is the kind of move the Kings used to make all the time, and it never worked.

Kind of agree K17, I think we need Kovy to be a consistent 20-25 goal scorer and prove to still be a sniper/scoring threat which i think he still is... He like Kopi and Carter are the type of players that age gracefully so im not worried about term... The bigger thing for me is that this seems to finally signal that the kids are going to be giving legit chances of making an impact/getting much more playing time...looking at you Amadio, Brodzinski, Vilardi and possibly Brinkley..

Now the question is, if some of our youngsters step up and produce(Vilardi, Kempe, Amadio, Iafallo) does that make Toffoli, Pearson, Muzzin and Martinez trade candidates/options to finally get a younger forward????

Kovalchuk - Kopitar - Brown
Pearson - Carter - Vilardi
Iafallo - Kempe - Toffoli
Thompson - Amadio - Lewis

Forbort - Doughty
Muzzin - Phaneuf
Brinkley - Martinez

 

[Rorschach]

Blake and Co are thinking, if we had Kovy in the playoffs, we don't get swept by Vegas. We probably win barely in a 7 game series. In my mind we eventually face Winnipeg.

 

[johnjm22]

Voynov and Kovalchuk have been teammates for the last 3 years in St. Petersburg.

I think Voynov probably wants to be in L.A. Having another Russian on the team is probably enticing.

Kings have about 3M in cap space. They could make it work with a few moves.

 

[lexlavender]

Blake and Co are thinking, if we had Kovy in the playoffs, we don't get swept by Vegas. We probably win barely in a 7 game series. In my mind we eventually face Winnipeg.

I'd say one forward wouldn't have changed the course of that series, but the scores were so low I can't even say that.

Getting to Winnipeg though? Crazy to think just Kovy would have helped that.

 

[Rorschach]

I'd say one forward wouldn't have changed the course of that series, but the scores were so low I can't even say that.

Getting to Winnipeg though? Crazy to think just Kovy would have helped that.

Kovy would help a little bit. I just think the team as a whole was not really as bad as the team that got swept. If we make it past Vegas, we have better than even odds against the Ducks. Then it would be interesting to see what Peg does against us.

 

[KingsFan7824]

Kovalchuk won't matter unless Brown, Toffoli, Pearson, Carter, and Doughty can score too.

 

[BigKing]

Well, Blake put his balls on the table for sure. Three years is scary but Management believes they aren't far off so here we are.

The importance of Vilardi cannot be understated. If he is a stud by 2020 and Kovy is a 25 goal guy, we might have something.

As a season seat holder, it is exciting. I just really don't know what to expect out of him, however.

 

[Butch 19]

he needs a Russian buddy on the team - so sign Voynov and we're all good.

 

[deaderhead28]

You don't sign Kovi to that contract unless you're going for another impact top 6 or top 4 defensemen.If Kovi went down to injury you're right back to the fwd group that got swept in the playoffs.I don't believe this is a good enough fwd group to win a cup as of yet.

 

[The Tikkanen]

The Kings needed goals and talent badly. Very few King players scare the other teams, so many vanilla dump and chase grinders on this roster and as the season wore on this was painfully evident. To acquire a player of IK's talent level and not give up any assets other than money is a great move. It's also the biggest signing in Kings history and I'm sure helps the Drew Doughty situation. Good day to be a Kings fan, no more bowls of vanilla ice cream.