THE STORY
In July 2010, the New Jersey Devils signed Ilya Kovalchuk to a 17-year, $102 million contract. The NHL rejected the deal, citing salary cap circumvention, as it included low salaries in the final years. The Devils were fined $3 million and forfeited draft picks for attempting to circumvent the salary cap.
TEAMS / PEOPLE:
NHL teams and players
WHY IT MATTERS
This incident highlighted the NHL's commitment to enforcing salary cap regulations and led to stricter contract structures to prevent similar circumventions.