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Ilya Kovalchuk skating CIRCLES around his sons is an A+ parenting video

February 10, 2020

After retiring just a few years into his 15-year contract with the New Jersey Devils, then spending five years in the KHL, Ilya Kovalchuk made his return to the NHL in 2018, signing a three-year deal with the L.A. Kings. The return was anything but triumphant, as Kovy lasted less than a season and a half in L.A., appearing in 81 games in which he scored 19 goals and collected 24 assists. This was once a player who, during his prime years, would routinely have 40-plus-goal, 30-plus-assists seasons.

Naturally, at the age of 36, many believed his best days were far behind him, including the Kings, who terminated his contract in December. Just weeks later, the Montreal Canadiens took a chance and signed him to a one-year deal, and so far it's paying off. In 15 games Kovalchuk has found the back of the net six times, and added six assists on top of that. The Canadiens have gone 9-6 during that span, including winning the last three in a row. There's plenty of season left, but it's fair to say Kovy has proved he's still got some left in the tank.

If his good stretch in Montreal wasn't enough to prove that to you, this video of Kovalchuk skating absolute CIRCLES around his two sons should do the trick. Sure, they aren't NHL competition, but it looks like Philipp and Artem know what they are doing out there (they are Ilya Kovalchuk's kids after all). And yet they had no answer for their pops' stick handling, which is giving this Rangers fan nightmares of his power play work in the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals:

In these modern times, parenting is all about positive reinforcement, everybody winning and more importantly, everyone having fun. Not on Kovy's watch. Philipp and Artem, and if that means getting embarrassed by their dad and then watching him post it to his Instagram account for his 423,000 followers to see, then so be it.