In a sportsnet.ca exclusive, Nick Kypreos has the salary numbers break down of the latest deal between the New Jersey Devils and Ilya Kovalchuk.
2010-11: $6 million
2011-12: $6 million
2012-13: $11 million
2013-14: $11.3 million
2014-15: $11.3 million
2015-16: $11.6 million
2016-17: $11.8 million
2017-18: $10 million
2018-19: $7 million
2019-20: $4 million
2020-21: $1 million
2021-22: $1 million
2022-23: $1 million
2023-24: $3 million
2024-25: $4 million
The New Jersey Devils and Ilya Kovalchuk continue to wait for word on whether their new deal will be approved by the National Hockey League.
The league has until Wednesday to make its decision and has given no indication when that will be announced.
For all the latest on the Kovalchuk contract situation be sure to log on to sportsnet.ca and follow Nick Kypreos on twitter @RealKyper
As reported by Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos, the new deal is worth $100 million over 15 years, with more of the money to be paid out over the final five years than the previous contract that was rejected by the NHL. The original deal, which would have paid Kovalchuk $102 million over 17 years, was rejected because too much of the money was to be paid out in the first 12 years, and the length of the deal circumvented “the spirit of the CBA.” Kovalchuk would have earned just $550,000 in each of the final five years of that deal.
The new deal will pay Kovalchuk an average of $2.6 million over the final three years, including a base salary of $4 million in the 2025-26 season, the last year of the contract.
The original deal had an annual cap hit of $6 million, while the new deal increases that to $6.67 million.
The NHL Players Association grieved the league’s decision to reject the previous deal, but an arbitrator sided with the NHL.
If Kovalchuk’s new deal is approved, the Devils will have to shed about $3-5 million in payroll from elsewhere in order to get under the $59.4-million salary cap for this season.
