Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland will meet with forward Pavel Datsyuk next week to discuss the forward’s plan for the 2016-17.
Datsyuk is expected to make a decison on whether or not he will return to the Red Wings to play out the final year of his three-year, $22.5-million contract or return to Russia.
“I know Pavel is coming back to Detroit in the middle of June, he has a camp that week, and we’re going to meet before that,” Holland said, via The Detroit News.
Datsyuk’s services are in demand in his native country. The 37-year-old has reportedly received an offer from KHL club SKA St. Petersburg for a two-year deal.
If Datsyuk elects to walk away from the final year of his NHL deal, the Red Wings will still be on the hook for his $7.5 million cap hit under the collective bargaining agreement’s 35-plus contract rule. It’s also possible the Red Wings could move his rights to another club looking to add salary in an effort to reach the cap floor.
Whatever the case, it appears the Red Wings will have a decision from Datsyuk later this month.
A former sixth-round pick (171st overall, 1998), Datsyuk has spent his entire NHL career with the Red Wings and has totalled 314 goals and 918 points in 953 games.
