I live in Ottawa, Canada and have heard many fans saying "Trade Kovalev". I cannot understand this movement. It makes little sense here. The "asset" you will get back is a similar salary on another team, that is a player they are dissappointed in. So, essentially, this move becomes my problem for your problem.
Kovalev is in the last year of a contract making $5 million. After this season, the Senators will have both Leclaire and Kovalev off the books, meaning $8.8 million in spending room for the 2011 season. This money could be huge with Brad Richards, Alexandre Semin, Simon Gagne, Chad Larose, David Backes, etc potentially hitting the free agency market.
The NHL gms have to start thinking like NBA gms where cap space is a sought commodity. I am so surprised a player like Kovalev is not a hot commodity. He has an expiring cap hit of $5million. In the off season, you can use that $5 million to shop for another player. He gives cap flexibility to a team on the cusp of making it big. Especially if that team can "hide" a player like Kovalev in the minors.
One of the few gms in hockey that seems to work the rules is Paul Holmgren, he masterfully took a terrible team and remade them essentially in one offseason by trading picks for exclusive negotiation rights to top players. Other teams have now noticed this strategy and have started using it.
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