Salavat Yulaev, former striker of Ak Bars and Dynamo Alexey Tereshchenko, who became a three-time world champion in hockey as a member of the Russian national team, said that 41-year-old Ilya Kovalchuk should continue his career next season. Tereshchenko quotes words Legal betting.
“Kovalchuk can still be useful at the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) level. He was also very useful for Spartak last season. Ilya is a professional and can be a “man” not only in the locker room, but also on the ice,” Tereshchenko said.
Kovalchuk signed a contract with Spartak in December 2023. Before that, the striker took a two-year break in his career: in 2021 he won the Gagarin Cup with Avangard, after which he left for the post of general manager of the Russian national team. However, in 2023, Kovalchuk decided to return to hockey as a player.
“Now everything will depend on Ilya himself: how much he wants to continue his professional career, how functionally ready he is,” Tereshchenko said. “The more such masters we have in the league, the more examples there will be of how to approach your work not only on the field, but also off it.”
Kovalchuk appeared in 25 KHL games last season and recorded four goals and four assists.
Previously dead The author of the first hat-trick in the history of the Russian national team.