Abel to Yzerman

Abel to Yzerman

Would You Like To See Ilya Kovalchuk Wearing The Winged Wheel?

06/04/2018 at 7:46am EDT

Ansar Khan of Mlive answers a few questions from the fans...

The first question is should the Wings make a run at signing Ilya Kovalchuk?

The Red Wings have had interest in Kovalchuk in the past and it wouldn’t surprise me if they were among the eight or so unidentified teams, according to TSN’s Darren Dreger, that have had discussions with his agent.

But Kovalchuk, in an interview with Dreger, said his priority is to win a Stanley Cup (he reached the playoffs only three times during his NHL career). I doubt he’d want to come to a rebuilding team since he’ll have other options.

From the Red Wings’ standpoint, despite their need for offense, they are better off not bringing in a high-priced older player on a multi-year deal. Give 2017 top pick Michael Rasmussen an opportunity (which they plan to do) and provide more growth opportunities for young wingers like Anthony Mantha and Andreas Athanasiou, with more ice time and prominent roles on the power play.

If the Red Wings were to sign an older free-agent forward, Thomas Vanek is a more realistic possibility on a one-year deal, someone who’d be moved at the trade deadline if they’re out of the playoff picture.

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Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977. No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y. Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation. There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature. Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that.

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