If You Ain't First, You're Last: Ilya Kovalchuk Has Reportedly Been Caught Speeding 115 Times
Bruce Bennett. Getty Images.Ilya Kovalchuk clearly has plenty of money to cover any traffic tickets he racks up on the road. Not that traffic laws exist in Russia, or that he'd ever have to pay any tickets in the motherland. But he signed a 15-year, $100 million contract extension with the New Jersey Devils back in 2010. Originally it was supposed to be a 17-year, $102 million contract. He should still be under contract with the New Jersey Devils right now and becoming a free agent this July, but we all know how things worked out in New Jersey. That's besides the point.
The fact of the matter is that he's made well over $100 million in his career. If that average speeding ticket is somewhere around $100, that means he could get caught speeding one million times before he runs out of money. According to this report, that seems to be the goal.
What a fucking rockstar. I guess when you move like Ilya Kovalchuk moves out on the ice, you can handle moving at everyone else's pace. Ilya Kovalchuk is one of the best Russian hockey players of all time, but this man was born to play football for the University of Georgia with that driving record. The man is addicted to speeding. Driving is the only thing he does faster than how quickly he left New Jersey after signing for 15-years. Imagine getting pulled over for driving on the shoulder of the road for the 20th time, and then still proceeding to do it another 26 times.
And again, I get that this is Russia we're talking about here. You win an Olympic gold medal for Russia, there are no more rules for you for the rest of your life. But at what point do you think about maybe just getting a driver? You have to imagine Putin could set him up with one of his guys.
Anyway, I like to think there's a world where eventually Kovy needs to make one last comeback to the NHL to pay off his driving fines in Russia. I'd love to have him for a year or two in Philadelphia to mentor Matvei Michkov. Give him $4M AAV for 2 seasons, and maybe get him an apartment right next to the rink so he doesn't need to drive to practice every day.