Here is a disclaimer: I was an Atlanta Thrashers fan. I do still miss Ilya Kovalchuk’s speed, excitement, and dynamic goal scoring ability.
I, like the rest of you, haven’t watched Kovy play much since he left the NHL in 2013, when he was 30.
He’s won two Gagarin Cups with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL in that time, gotten paid, and has scored 107 goals and 264 points in 245 games. Yes, the quality of play in he KHL is significantly less than that of the NHL, but still. Kovalchuk still has the ability to be a presence on the ice and an asset on the point sheet.