Ilya Kovalchuk, one of the best young forwards in the game of hockey, is a Devil. The price? A defensive defenseman, a productive young forward, a top prospect with anger issues, and a first round pick…a pretty decent haul for a rebuilding Thrashers team. That being said the big headlines surrounding this deal rightfully revolve around what this means for the Devils.
Jersey just went from being an Eastern Conference contender to the team to beat. Kovalchuk gives the Devils something they haven’t really had in a long time (all due respect to Patrick Elias): a dominant superstar point per game forward who can light the lamp with the best of them. Did I mention the fact that Kovalchuk is just entering the prime of his career at only 26 years of age?!?
While the Devils just got significantly better all the Flyers and Paul Holmgren could do was watch helplessly from the sidelines. Rumor has it Philly was involved in the talks till the very end…their lack of a first or second round pick in the 2010 draft coupled with their perceived unwillingness to part with top prospects their likely undoing. Watching Kovalchuk go to the Devils after this drawn-out drama has to be the equivilant of watching the love of your life getting plowed by your worst enemy. Forgive me for being a bit melodramatic, but I just can’t help it.
Despite the team’s lack of picks I still have a hard time believing the Flyers couldn’t get a deal done here. If bringing in an elite player on par with Crybaby or Ovechkin meant giving up a few big pieces why not do it? Bobby Abreu…errr…Jeff Carter is as soft as they come…why not package him with underachieving sin bin resident Scott Hartnell and a couple other players to get a trade done? If Atlanta insisted on getting JVR wouldn’t you have to pull the trigger either way? It’s not like Kovalchuk is a fading star in the twilight of his career. Even if Van Riemsdyk were to completely fulfill his potential (still very much up in the air) would he still be nearly as good as Kovalchuk? Not likely.
It’s difficult to point fingers without having inside knowledge of what went on prior to this move going down, but one thing I can tell you is that the Flyers just missed their chance at getting one of the best young players in the game of hockey. Their loss is the Devils gain. Fast forward to late April/early May after yet another playoff collapse at the hands of a hated rival, Flyers fans will be asking themselves how much of a difference having a superstar like Ilya Kovalchuk could have made.
Enough to make just about any price they would have had to pay well worth it, I assure you.
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