CenterIce 83 Report post Posted June 11, 2010 (edited) Note: I guess my title was too long. This is just a post from ESPN.com Insider that suggests Russian players may bolt for the KHL, if they want to guarantee playing in the Olympics in 2014. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman might try to stop NHL players from participating in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia. And that might be a big factor in pushing Ilya Kovalchuk to the KHL. Kovy's agent, Yury Nikolaev, told Sport-Express (as per RT.com) that the rumored three-year, $42 million deal is not true and "clearly overstated," but he said the three-year term is accurate. So why three year? Nikolaev said, "Ilya has a desire to play in Russia until the Sochi Olympics [in 2014]." The KHL team most interested in Kovy's services is SKA St. Petersburg, whose president, Alexander Medvedev, is also the KHL president. The deal rumored to be on the table is three years at around $10 million a year. Another KHL club, Salavat Yulaev, might also be interested. In the NHL, he'll probably get offers of no more than $9 million a year -- probably closer to $8 million -- but for a longer term. From ESPN.com Insider Edited June 11, 2010 by CenterIce Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
