Breaking: Kings' reveal Kovlachuk has had surgery.

When it rains it pours. 

The Los Angeles Kings have seen very limited production out of veteran forward Ilya Kovalchuk thus far since signing him to a big new deal out of the Kontinental Hockey League. The Kings themselves have gotten off to a very poor start to the season so it's rather difficult to know how much of the blame should be placed at the feet of Kovalchuk himself and how much needs to be placed at the feet of the King's organization, but we may know one of the reasons that Kovalchuk has struggled so badly.

According to a report from Los Angeles Kings insider Helene Elliott , the Los Angeles Kings have informed her that Ilya Kovalchuk has undergone a surgical procedure related to the ankle injury that he has been dealing with for the past several days. According to the Kings the procedure is an "Ankle Bursectomy" and is expected to keep Kovalchuk sidelined for at least the next four weeks as he recovers. The news could not have come at a worse moment for a Kings organization that appears to be in serious turmoil at the moment. 

Through 25 goals this season the 35 year old winger has produced 5 goals and 9 assists for 14 points but he also boasts an ugly plus minus rating of -13. Needless to say that was not the kind of production that the Kings were expecting when they signed the veteran star forward to a deal worth $6.25 million per season, and especially not in the first season of that deal. Right now it looks like the King's may have made a mistake with this move but when you consider that Kovalchuk has 2 more years on his deal at an identical cap hit it may turn real ugly for the Kings in year's 2 and 3. 

For those of you who are looking for a silver lining here I unfortunately don't really have one for you. There was however some relatively good news earlier in the day when theKings managed to snag former first round pick Nikita Scherbak off the waiver wire. The former Habs forward could provide a much needed jolt to the offense but he has yet to prove he can do it consistently at the NHL level.

[pub]