New York Islanders sign KHL star Jan Kovar to one-year deal

The New York Islanders, needing center depth, have signed KHL center Jan Kovar to a one-year deal worth $2 million

The New York Islanders are looking to quickly rebuild after losing their captain John Tavares. Replacing a guy like him can be difficult. However, the Islanders have a number of centers who will try to replace him. The Isles, not wanting to wait and see if they can solve it internally, have signed KHL star center Jan Kovar to a one-year deal worth $2 million.

Assuming Mathew Barzal takes over Tavares’ spot as the first line center, this leaves an open competition for the second-line center role. Kovar figures to be a part of the competition, along with restricted free agent center Brock Nelson.

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For the last five seasons, Kovar has played for Magnitogorsk Metallurg of the KHL. In 285 games, the center has 286 points (97 goals and 189 assists).

During the 2018 Winter Olympics, Kovar played for the Czech Republic. In six games, he picked up five points.

On the NHL expectancy scale, the KHL registers at 0.7461. Going off of Kovar’s 35 points in 54 games (0.648 points per game), that would have given him 0.4853 points per game last season in the NHL.

Of course, that’s merely a projection. It’s reasonable to assume Kovar will improve with better coaching and teammates. For $2 million dollars, he’s a nice bargain. The Islanders likely have a part of their center solution with Kovar.

However, the big question is can anyone fill in at second-line center? Barzal already outproduced Tavares last season, so it’s fair to assume he’s jumping up to a first-line center role. However, part of his success came because Tavares attracted most of their opponent’s best lines.

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Kovar had offers from other teams but likely went to the Islanders because they give him the best chance to play in the NHL. It remains to be seen if his contract has an assignment clause, which would let him go back to the KHL if he doesn’t make the NHL.

Signing Kovar is admittedly a risk, albeit a small one. Who knows how his game will translate to the NHL? That said, the Islanders are a team who are willing to find out, especially given their lack of center depth.