November 11
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Ilya Kovalchuk will not be in the Thrashers lineup Thursday against the New York Rangers. The Thrashers captain experienced soreness in his right foot warming up prior to practice on Wednesday, according to head coach John Anderson, and left the ice. After calling Kovalchuk's return to the lineup a "game-time" decision following the practice, the organization made the decision hours later that he would not travel to New York. His return for Friday's home game against Los Angeles has not been ruled out. The organization said the soreness was not considered a setback. Kovalchuk has missed nearly three weeks with a broken bone near the top of his foot. He skated for the first time since the ..."
November 11
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Ilya Kovalchuk is indeed a fast healer. The Thrashers' captain appears ready to return to the lineup less than three weeks after breaking a bone in his right foot. Coach John Anderson told the AJC that he is "95 percent" sure that Kovalchuk will play Thursday against the New York Rangers. Kovalchuk went through a full team practice Tuesday. The forward skated Monday, an off-day for the team, for the first time since the injury. "We'll see how it feels [Wednesday] and take it from there," Kovalchuk said. "If it's sore, I'll take it easy. If it's going to be good, I'll skate with the team again." Kovalchuk said he would consult with team trainers Wednesday about his status. He participated ..."
November 10
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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The Thrashers are getting goals in Ilya Kovalchuk's absence - most of it from their defensemen. The team's last seven goals have come from blueliners. Kovalchuk, the franchise leader in goals, assists and points, has missed the last two weeks with a broken bone in his foot. In the six full games without their captain, the Thrashers are 3-3. During that span, the team has 12 goals from defensemen and seven from forwards -- which means 63.2 percent of the offense has come from the defense. After forward Bryan Little scored in the second period against Columbus on Thursday, the Thrashers have gotten goals from: Tobias Enstrom and Pavel Kubina against the Blue Jackets; Zach Bogosian, Kubina ..."
October 28
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Ilya Kovalchuk was upbeat, especially for someone with a broken bone in his right foot that will cost him four weeks of the season. "It's very disappointing but it's part of our game," the Thrashers captain said Tuesday. "Injuries happen and I just have to stay positive. That's going to help me recover faster. "I have to be in a good mood. I don't want to bring any negative stuff. I'll cry on my pillow back home but here, I'm fine." Kovalchuk suffered the injury in Saturday's loss to San Jose when he was hit with a shot. He has been placed on injured reserve. When he went down, Kovalchuk was tied for the NHL lead with nine goals and tied for the team lead with 10 points. If out four weeks, ..."
October 27
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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The big question was: How good are the Thrashers? The bigger question is: How good are the Thrashers without Ilya Kovalchuk? The high-scoring forward suffered a broken bone in his right foot Saturday night and is expected to miss four weeks, the team announced after its star player underwent a CT scan Monday. The team captain who was tied for the NHL lead with nine goals, Kovalchuk was hit in the foot by a shot during the first period of the 4-3 loss to San Jose. "It's never good when you lose your best player, top scorer, captain," defenseman Zach Bogosian said. "There is not much we can do about it. We just have to come together as a team and step up. That's the bottom line. Everyone ..."
October 26
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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It will be at least Monday until the Thrashers know the extent of Ilya Kovalchuk's foot injury. Kovalchuk left Saturday's game against San Jose after being hit in the foot with a shot in the first period. Thrashers coach John Anderson said following the game that Kovalchuk would be further examined by doctors on Monday and the team said Sunday no further information was available."
October 25
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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The Thrashers lost more than a game Saturday. They lost Ilya Kovalchuk. Kovalchuk took a shot off his foot in the first period and did not return in a 4-3 loss to San Jose. The exact nature and extent of the injury was not immediately known. Thrashers coach John Anderson said Kovalchuk would visit a doctor Monday to determine the next course of action. "He'll have a scan and an X-ray, and we'll figure out what it is," Anderson said. "He was walking, but tentatively, otherwise he would have come back and played." The Thrashers' captain, who entered the game tied for the NHL lead with nine goals, played only 3 minutes, 54 seconds in four shifts. It was another slow start that led to the ..."
October 1
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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It is unlikely that Ilya Kovalchuk will re-sign with the Thrashers before the start of the regular season on Saturday. General manager Don Waddell said Wednesday he remained "confident" that a new deal with the Thrashers' franchise player would be reached and sooner rather than later. "I don't think it's going to get done before opening night," Waddell said. "We're going to talk again in the next 24 hours but I don't see it getting done." Waddell later added: "I don't think we'll be talking about this at Christmas time." Waddell previously said he'd thought there would be a new deal struck before the start of the season. Kovalchuk is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. ..."
August 25
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Thrashers general manager Don Waddell described the ongoing contract negotiations with star Ilya Kovalchuk as "constructive" and said Monday that he is optimistic that a new deal would be completed. Waddell said the two sides have exchanged contract proposals. "We've had several face-to-face meetings," Waddell said. "We've had some very, very long discussions." Kovalchuk, the franchise's all-time leader in goals, points and games played, is entering the final year of his contract. The earliest the team could begin negotiating a new contract in the offseason was July 1. Waddell has said previously he wanted to get a deal done before the start of the season. The Thrashers report to training ..."
August 22
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
columnist Jeff Schultz
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Question: How screwed up does somebody have to be to demand a no-trade clause in his new six-year, $45 million contract extension, only to ask for a trade one year into the deal, only to then reject a trade because he doesn't like the team he was going to be dealt to? This is a hockey blog. But non-hockey fans, hang with me here for a minute because this crosses over lines for all sports. I covered the Thrashers in their first three seasons. If there seemed two absolutes about the franchise's future, they were this: 1) Dany Heatley would be their captain and leader for several years to come; 2) Ilya Kovalchuk would be their wonderfully talented but volatile scorer for years to come. And if ..."
July 21
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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In the past several weeks, the Thrashers have signed a free agent forward (Nik Antropov), traded for a top-four defenseman (Pavel Kubina) and drafted potential top scorer (Evander Kane). Whether they keep the only player that most people walking around the streets of Atlanta can actually identify is another matter. Negotiations are expected to heat up this week between general manager Don Waddell and Ilya Kovalchuk's agent, Jay Grossman. The two sides aren't saying much publicly that they haven't said before. Waddell sent me an email Monday, saying: "It's our goal to sign Ilya to a long-term deal." Grossman declined comment. (He's known as a tough agent, but issuing negotiating rhetoric to ..."
June 12
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
columnist Mark Bradley
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This has Marian Hossa written all over it, only in larger letters. The Thrashers dumped their second-best player at the 2008 trading deadline because they knew they couldn't re-sign him. Their best player is about to enter the final season of his contract, and Don Waddell shouldn't let Ilya Kovalchuk enter it as a Thrasher. Kovalchuk was the NHL's 11th-highest-paid player in 2008-2009, and some club will make him one of the top five come 2010-2011. It would be an upset if that team is the Thrashers. And if they can't keep him, they should trade him. Last month Waddell, the Thrashers' GM, told esteemed colleague Chris Vivlamore he wouldn't trade Kovalchuk this summer or at the deadline or ..."
May 17
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Ilya Kovalchuk will be a Thrasher next season. General manager Don Waddell told the Journal-Constitution last week that, unequivocally, Kovalchuk will remain with the team as it attempts to re-sign one of the NHL's elite players. There will be no trade deadline move - such as with Marian Hossa - if negotiations reach an impasse. Beyond next season, well, that remains to be seen. The Thrashers face a franchise-defining summer with Kovalchuk entering the final year of his contract. Re-signing Kovalchuk, who will command a major contract, is unquestionably the priority. He is the franchise leader in goals, points and games played. Kovalchuk, 26, has made it clear that to re-sign him, the ..."