Ilya Kovalchuk, long-time NHL forward, was a healthy scratch for the LA Kings on Tuesday when the team defeated the Minnesota Wild 3-1. As it stands right now, his future with the Kings organization is in limbo.

Reports surfaced on Wednesday that the veteran forward would be scratched from the line up for the "foreseeable future," though he has still been invited to practice with the team. When asked how long Kovalchuk is expected out of the line-up, Kings general manager Rob Blake declined to answer. He did note however, “We're in last place, right? We changed a lot of lineups. We're trying to find combinations that work, try to score some goals.”

The Kings currently sit at 6-11-1 on the season with 13 points. As of Thursday, the organization sits in last place in the NHL standings.

Today it was reported by Jon Rosen that the 3-time all-star has spoken out about his current status with the Kings.

" I don't know what was reported. I'm a regular player. Everybody's got a healthy scratch, and we're in last place, so coach has to do something to change things, and I'm just here every day for the guys, for the team and if they need me, I'm ready to go."

At the time of being benched, Kovalchuk had recorded only 1 goal and 2 assists through 13 games. It has been reported that he is still attending practices and morning skates as part of the team.

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