Ilya Kovalchuk signs with Kings, Noah Hanifin shipped to Flames as Bruins regroup

DALLAS – The Bruins were one of four teams courting Ilya Kovalchuk, but it was the Los Angeles Kings who signed him to a three-year contract Saturday, a move that officially marks his return to the NHL after a five-year hiatus in the KHL.

Kovalchuk agreed to a three-year deal worth $6.25 million annually, according to Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada. That’s a gracious deal for a 35-year-old player who hasn’t played in the NHL in five years.

Don Sweeney said this weekend that the Bruins “presented their options” to Kovalchuk and agent J.P. Barry. Kovalchuk was also being sought after by the Sharks and Golden Knights.

"We put ourselves in position to try and be considered," Sweeney said after the draft.

"We thought it was a good fit and it didn't work. We'll move onto the next one. It was certainly something we wanted to look at and thought it was something we could look on favorably internally."

Sweeney said that the three-year term that was offered "would not be ideal," but that it was the marketplace for Kovalchuk. The agreed upon deal was just about identical in length and dollar value to the one 38-year-old Patrick Marleau signed last year with the Maple Leafs.

The Bruins now have to turn their attention toward their contingency plan at second-line right-wing, which could mean a return for 34-year-old Rick Nash.

They also were not contenders for Noah Hanifin, the Hurricanes' young defenseman with strong Boston roots (Saint Sebastian's/Boston College). It seemed unlikely that Hanifin was going to be traded because of the big haul Carolina was going to demand. A deal was finally reached with the Calgary Flames. They shipped former Bruins defenseman Doug Hamilton, forward Micheal Ferland and defensive prospect Adam Fox to the Hurricanes for Hanifin and Elias Lindholm. Hamilton who just turned 25, will be heading to his third NHL team. He had 44 points last year, second-most in his career. Ferland had 21 goals and 20 assists, and Fox is a strong prospect at Harvard. That indeed is a franchise-shifting trade, one the Bruins didn't quite need at this stage of their team building.

Boston has a strong core in place, one that wasn't worth disrupting to land Hanifin, who arguably is not even the best defensemen taken in the 2015 draft.

Now the attention for the Bruins shifts other needs Sweeney must address, such as securing a backup goaltender. Anton Khudobin seemed likely to return, but the Bruins have not yet reached a deal.

According to a source, the two sides are scheduled to meet Saturday night before the interviewing period, which begins at midnight until free agency starts officially July 1. Other free agents, such as Riley Nash, and restricted free agent Sean Kuraly, remain in close talks with the Bruins, but nothing has been finalized.

Sweeney said on Thursday the Bruins were “jockeying simultaneously,” and a deal with Kovalchuk would have nixed Nash’s return.

Nash, who was acquired in February for the Bruins first-round pick, only played 11 regular season games because of injuries and was inconsistent in the playoffs. If the Bruins can come to an agreement with Nash, it’s possible he’ll consider a more cost-effective deal in exchange for the chances to win a Stanley Cup. He was on the books for $7.8 million last season before the Rangers shipped him out.

The 34-year-old Nash is still deciding on whether he will return for his 16th NHL season, a big factor in the progress of the Bruins conversation with him.

"We've had great communications with Rick and his representatives and we'll continue to do that," Sweeney said. "Whenever Rick makes a decision on his own future, we'll continue those. The time is in his court at this stage to initiate whatever talks. He strongly indicated Boston is a place he'd consider, as would we. We have some business to attend to, so the timing of his decision may or may not line up."

There will be options for the Bruins for their second-line right wing now that they are out of the running for Kovalchuk. They could opt to move David Pastrnak back with David Krejci and Jake DeBrusk. They tried to pair Pastrnak with Krejci at the start of last season but the Czech teammates did not find the right chemistry.

The Bruins may not want to break up their super-trio of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, and Pastrnak, but that’s a line they can always go back to. Anders Bjork, who missed most of last season with a shoulder injury, may get another shot on the top line. There may be an opportunity for Danton Heinen, who was a passenger on that top line when the Bruins lost Bjork.

Still, Kovalchuk was a player the Bruins felt could fit in nicely to that opening on the second-line. Kovalchuk, a natural left wing, can play on either side and has made a career for himself as a prolific goal scorer. As good as they may have felt, their offer was not enough to sway Kovalchuk to Boston.

Now Sweeney and the Bruins will continue with a roster that, as of now, is more similar to the one they had last year than it could have been by this point.