The crazy contract has been approved, and I bet you anything this will open the floodgates if the league isn't very very careful.



Ilya Kovaluchuk saw his $100 million 15-year deal approved by the NHL on condition that the NHLPA agree to sit down and negotiate a set of rules for long term contracts.

Kovalchuk's contract is not the first long-term one. Islanders Rick Di Pietro inked a similar 15-year deal in 2006. But Di Pietro is a goalie, while Kovalchuk is a goal scorer. At 27 years old, Kovalchuk will only see the end of his contract in 2025 when he is 42 years old, well past the time where the large majority of hocket players are still productive. It is even possible that he will be retired and still being paid an NHL salary.

This is where the NHL has, I think, a valid beef. These long-term contracts are just a way of bypassing the salary cap. The contracts are front-loaded with money, and back-ended with minimum salaries. Because the cap allows teams to average out the cost of a contract over it's life, the Devils can thus pay Kovalchuk some $9 million a season and only suffer a cap hit of $6.7 million.

I think owners are mortgaging the future of their teams for payment today. What will happen to future GMs who are hamstrung with backend salary cap hits for players who may be retired by that time. The future will tell. I just hope Gary Bettman has the gumption to keep the owners in place. These long-term contracts could be ruinous for the League.