It appears Ilya Kovalchuk may finally be at the end of his pro hockey career. In an interview with Sport-Express.ru, the general manager of the last team Kovalchuk played for said he's hearing that Kovalchuk is considering retirement.
"Ilya made an invaluable contribution to the championship. We parted with him warmly, saying that the door to Avangard remained open for him," said Avangard Omsk general manager Alexei Volkov. "If he has a desire to return to us, then we agreed to definitely consider such an opportunity. Such leaders are not scattered around. But lately, rumors have reached me that Ilya is thinking about ending his career."
"The final decision has not been made by him. So far, this is only a rumor. I hope that a fire is still burning inside Kovalchuk: such a great master will be useful to any team. However, it is not present in the Avangard channel at the moment. His agent has not contacted us with this idea.
After leaving the NHL in 2020, Kovalchuk signed a two-year contract with Avangard and went on to win the Gagarin Cup in his first year with the team. Then, he surprised many people by asking to be released from the second year of his deal. Many assumed it was because he wanted to pursue another NHL contract. However, there don't seem to be many, if any, teams interested in his services right now.
Kovalchuk, 38, played a total of 926 games in the NHL, scoring 443 goals and 876 points. He added another 11 goals and 28 points in 40 playoff games. Since being drafted first overall in 2001, he played for the Atlanta Thrashers, New Jersey Devils, LA Kings, Montreal Canadiens and Washington Capitals.
