Ilya Kovalchuk

Ilya Kovalchuk has an enviable sports biography, with ups and downs, with non-standard moves that characterize the hockey player as a person.

For example, the refusal of $ 96 million when an athlete was not satisfied with the terms of the contract between the union and the NHL. Then Ilya felt unhappy overseas, and at home he won 2 Gagarin Cups and the Olympics. The only award that the forward has not yet held is the Stanley Cup.

The famous hockey player Ilya Kovalchuk was born in Tver on April 15, 1983. According to the zodiac sign Aries. It is believed that in sports such people choose speed, fights and the intensity of passions or martial arts. Moreover, it is not required to force the child to practice, rather, on the contrary, you will have to control the output of energy and direct it in the right direction.

Father Valery Nikolayevich worked as a basketball coach, and later headed the School of Higher Sports Skills. Ilya's mother, Lyubov Nikolaevna, was far from sports. She was in charge of the district polyclinic. The parents gave the name to the boy in honor of the famous hero Ilya Muromets in the hope that the child will grow up as strong and healthy, and the son fully justified their hopes. Now, with a height of 191 cm, the athlete weighs 103 kg.

Kovalchuk Sr., being an athlete himself, in the choice between hockey and basketball, determined the “hockey fate” for his son. Later, the champion's mother recalled in an interview that Ilya, as a child, stood out against the background of his peers by striving to be the first, and it became clear that "something will come out of the guy."

From the age of 4, his father began to take Ilya to the gym, where, playing outdoor games, he received general physical training, and at the age of 5 he sent his son to the hockey section of his friend, coach Viktor Zhukov. Valery Nikolayevich actively participated in the training process, additionally trained with Ilya, took the boy to hockey matches in Moscow. It was thanks to the lessons with my father that the famous wrist stroke was worked out, which became the hallmark of Kovalchuk, and a year later Ilya had no equal in the section in terms of skill level.

Until the 5th grade, Ilya Kovalchuk studied in a regular school, then his father transferred him to a sports boarding school. From the age of 15, the young man was in the Moscow school of the Olympic reserve. During his studies, Kovalchuk participated in tournaments and performed at all-Russian competitions as part of various teams in Tver. Ilya managed to excel at such a championship in 1993, when he scored 33 goals and ended up in Dynamo Moscow.

In 1994, as part of the Spartak children's team at a competition in Minnesota (USA), Kovalchuk was recognized as the top scorer. At the overseas tournament, he scored 22 goals.

Kovalchuk's sports career is developing rapidly. At the age of 16, Ilya signed his first professional contract with Moscow “Spartak”, getting not in the youth team, but immediately in the adult team. The guy was very proud of his salary of 15 thousand rubles. per month.

Hockey player Kovalchuk becomes the youngest player in the Russian Premier League. In 2000, participating with the team in the Challenge Cup held in Canada for hockey players under 17, he was the best player in this championship. Now his hockey stick has taken a place of honor in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

In the same year, the athlete won silver in the junior national team. In 2001, the team managed to take gold medals, and Ilya received the title of the best forward of the tournament. At the same time, the young hockey player made his debut in adult hockey. Spartak, for which he has been playing for 2 seasons, is making its way to the Higher League. An active player is noticed by representatives of the NHL, Kovalchuk begins to play for the Atlanta Thrashers club. It is noteworthy that in the 2001 draft of the newcomers to the American team, he was assigned the first number.

In 2002, at the Olympics in Salt Lake City, Kovalchuk, being a member of the Russian national team, receives a bronze medal and the title of "Honored Master of Sports", and in 2003 the hockey player already constantly participates in world championships for the national team and at the same time studies in absentia at the Academy of Physical Education according to an individual program.

In 2004, the Russian striker became the league's best sniper. Ilya receives the Maurice Richard Trophy prize for his effective play. Kovalchuk was also recognized as the best representative of Russia in the NHL. As part of Atlanta, the forward showed the most effective game. In the 2005/2006 season, Kovalchuk managed to score 98 points (52 + 46) according to the goal + pass system. For the next several seasons, the Russian striker consistently remained in the leading positions in the ranking of the best NHL scorers, and his performance statistics were one of the most productive in the league.

The fans of the Russian team especially remembered the 2008 World Cup, which took place in Canada. On the ice arenas of Quebec and Halifax, the Russian team showed the best result, and thanks to the puck that Kovalchuk scored in the final match, the team won gold. In the film "Champions" the directors decided to show how the famous hockey player overcame a series of failures, throwing the winning puck into the gates of the Canadians.

In 2010, Ilya Kovalchuk signed a 15-year contract with the New Jersey Devils hockey club. The cost of this agreement with the American team was $ 100 million. It would seem that America should have become native to Ilya for quite a long time, but this did not happen. The Russian forward played for the Devils for only 3 seasons and, unexpectedly for many, having announced his decision to leave the overseas club, returned to his homeland.

A similar event excited the world hockey community. The fans tried to find out what caused such a radical decision. In the summer of 2013, Ilya began playing for SKA St. Petersburg. The agreement with the Russian club was signed for 4 years.

Ilya Kovalchuk considered the 2014 Winter Olympics to be the main event in his professional career. The fans expected victory from the Russian national team, but this never happened. 5th place in Sochi is a total failure for the Russian national team. In many ways, such negative results are associated with Kovalchuk's injury, since Ilya injured his knee in the match against the Slovak national team.

In 2015, at the World Championships in the Czech Republic, the famous forward successfully acted as the captain of the Russian national team. Thanks to his efforts, the Russians were able to take 2nd place in the tournament. It seemed that the idol of millions would be able to lead the team to new victories, but this assumption turned out to be wrong.

In 2016, Ilya Kovalchuk was not included in the application for the home world championship. The coaching staff, having analyzed the game of the legendary hockey player, decided not to invite him to the national team. In December 2015, the team led by Kovalchuk took 4th place in the Channel One Cup, and the forward himself was marked by an uncertain play and a scoring double against the Finnish national team. Merit at the world championship in the Czech Republic was not appreciated, since the striker began to lose shape, and in matches for the St. Petersburg SKA Kovi (Kovalchuk's nickname) often did not score points at all.

There were no disagreements with the coach of the Russian national team Oleg Znark, and the situation was explained by the simple logic of the selection of candidates. The lack of playing practice in important KHL matches is the main reason why Ilya was not given the opportunity to play for the country's main hockey team.

According to American media reports, during his performances in the National Hockey League, Ilya had conflicts. Bob Hartley, who led the Thrashers, has repeatedly stated that the forward is in no hurry to return to defense, and also does not assist the defenders at the last line. Sometimes the Canadian mentor tried to influence Kovalchuk by a sharp decrease in playing time, but still there were no more significant incidents of this kind in the career of the great hockey player.

The 2017 World Cup, held in Germany and France, Kovalchuk missed due to injury - the striker underwent knee surgery. Ilya did not go to Denmark a year later. This time it was a joint decision of the athlete and the headquarters of the national team. Before that, head coach Oleg Znark was removed from the helm of the national team. The press erupted with predictions that the primacy of the planet for Russia would end in disaster, and it was not mistaken. For the first time in 5 years, the Russians were left without medals.

The personal life of a sports star, unlike the ice rink, is quiet and stable. The hockey player Kovalchuk, already well-known in Russia, noticed his future wife when he watched the clip of the Mirage group on TV. The spectacular blonde - the soloist Nicole Ambrazaitis - immediately attracted attention, and the man decided that he would definitely get to know her. Ilya and Nicole spent their first date in a cafe. The girl liked the athlete immediately. She appreciated his self-confidence combined with good upbringing and humility.

After 5 years of marriage, the couple had a daughter, Carolina, and when she was 2.5 years old, Ilya and Nicole got married. The solemn wedding ceremony took place on August 17, 2007. The wedding celebration was held first in Moscow, and then repeated in Tver, where Kovalchuk had numerous friends. A year later, the lovers got married. The sacrament took place in the Novodevichy Convent.

In 2009, a replenishment took place in the hockey player's family, a son Philip was born, and a year later - Artem. When in 2010 Kovalchuk signed a contract with the New Jersey Devils, the family moved to America to be closer to her husband and father. Nicole, for the sake of her husband's career, abandoned plans to become a singer and devoted herself entirely to raising children. In January 2014, their daughter Eva was born.

The forward believes that then, in 2001, he was incredibly lucky, which he wrote about on Instagram, congratulating his beloved on the wedding anniversary. Photos of a happy family are also regularly published there.

At the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, the Russian national team became the champion of the Games in the final Russia-Germany match. With 55 seconds left until the end of the game, and the Germans were leading with a score of 2: 3, Nikita Gusev saved the national team from defeat with one throw, taking it to overtime. Already in extra time, the Russians scored the decisive goal, the author of which was Kirill Kaprizov. The Russian national team won the title of the Olympic champion for the first time in the last 26 years.

According to Kovalchuk, he walked towards this dream from the age of 5. Ilya dedicated his victory at the difficult Olympics to the memory of his father. The hockey player sold the prize BMW to his colleague Artemy Panarin, who plays for the Columbus Blue Jackets, and the money in the amount of 7 million rubles. sent to charity. According to Panarin, he did it purposefully, because he also planned to help children, but did not want to transfer funds to incomprehensible funds. And he trusts Kovalchuk, he knows that his friend "will not squander over trifles."

Ilya paid for the operations for 2 children, and literally found a third needy family on the street, renting an apartment for them.

The hockey player is one of the authors of the From a Pure Heart charity event, in which the KHL stars meet on the ice. The first match took place in 2010, and since then the event has invariably attracted crowds of spectators, and tickets are sold out in 2-3 hours. The collected funds are sent to the targeted: children's institutions, hospitals, rehabilitation centers in the cities where the games are held.

Kovalchuk's new contract was named the main event of the 2018 offseason. The Russian striker again flew overseas for 3 years, to the Los Angeles Kings. The amount of the transaction was not in the rank of modest $ 18.75 million. But Ilya says that he went to realize the dream of the Stanley Cup, and not earn.

Analysts say that such contract conditions for a non-young athlete are good luck, but the club may have been in a hurry, carried away by the expectations that Kovalchuk will score 30 goals per season.

On the other hand, such trust in Ilya is evidence of the high appreciation of the Americans. After all, when Alexander Radulov left CSKA, he received a contract for a year and $ 5.75 million. And only when the Montreal Canadiens were convinced that Radu had no problems, the Dallas Stars offered a 5-year agreement for $ 31.2 million.

The forward left with a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. Ilya admitted that in Russia he achieved everything he dreamed of, but he feels that he still has strength, and therefore is ready for new challenges. Although a lot has changed over the 5 years of absence from the NHL.

The first games for the Kings brought the next achievements to the Russian's piggy bank - Ilya has more than 400 assists in the ranks of the NHL.

Honored Master of Sports of Russia Major League Champion (with Spartak) Two-time Gagarin Cup winner (with SKA) Two-time World Champion Two-time World Championship Silver Medalist Two-time World Championship bronze medalist Bronze medalist and Olympic champion

Ilya Kovalchuk 's estimated Net Worth, Salary, Income, Cars, Lifestyles & many more details have been updated below.

Let's check, How Rich is Ilya Kovalchuk in 2020 ?

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2021

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1.4M in 2021. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $746.3K - $1.2M.

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2020

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1.4M in 2020. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $915.7K - $1.8M.

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2019

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1.7M in 2019. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $834.4K - $2M.

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2018

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1.1M in 2018. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $518.1K - $1.8M.

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2017

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1.5M in 2017. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $631.2K - $1.4M.

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2016

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1M in 2016. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $718.1K - $1.9M.

Ilya Kovalchuk Net Worth 2015

Ilya Kovalchuk 's revenue is $1.5M in 2015. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Ilya Kovalchuk and could vary in the range between $842.3K - $2M.

It is an overall forecast for the net worth of Ilya Kovalchuk. The evaluation covers the latest 5 years and an approximation for next year. See above to learn how much money does Ilya Kovalchuk makes a year.

The range above shows an estimation based on evaluation generated by public information about sponsorships or other sources found on the internet. It's summarized data from Ilya Kovalchuk's projects existing in AidWiki's repository. It's an approximation of the revenue compiled by AidWiki and may not correspond with the real amount.