Red Wings' Datsyuk offered KHL contract: agent

Detroit Red Wings forward Pavel Datsyuk has been offered a contract proposal by SKA St. Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League, but has not signed it or agreed to terms to play in Russia next season, his agent Dan Milstein told NHL.com on Wednesday.
Reports from Russia earlier Wednesday quoted Gennady Timchenko, chairman of the KHL's board of directors, saying Datsyuk will join SKA. Reports Tuesday said Datsyuk had agreed to a two-year contract with the team.

Milstein told NHL.com Datsyuk remains in Russia, where he played in the 2016 IIHF World Championship, serving as captain of the bronze medal-winning Russian team. Datsyuk had one goal and 10 assists in 10 games.
Datsyuk is going on a family vacation for two weeks to contemplate his future. He will return to the United States in mid-June to meet with Milstein and Red Wings general manager Ken Holland.
Datsyuk, 37, has one season remaining on the three-year contract with Detroit that took effect in 2014. If Datsyuk retires or plays in Russia, the NHL salary-cap charge associated with Datsyuk's contract will count against Detroit's salary cap for the 2016-17 season.

On Tuesday, Milstein told the Detroit Free Press that Datsyuk "would like to leave, but at the same time, he wants to make sure the Wings have options. He wants to help the team any way he can with the salary-cap issue."
The Red Wings could trade Datsyuk to an NHL team willing to absorb his salary cap charge.
Datsyuk was a sixth-round pick (No. 171) by Detroit in the 1998 NHL Draft and has played 14 seasons in the NHL. He has 918 points (314 goals, 604 assists) in 953 games.
In April, Datsyuk told the Free Press he wanted to go home and his NHL career likely was finished.
"I'm thinking I go home after this season," Datsyuk said. "I may not be done with hockey, but - it is hard to say - I think I am done playing in NHL."
He later told reporters he wasn't certain. After his final game of the season, an overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning that eliminated the Red Wings from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the first round, Datsyuk said he needed time to think about his future.
"I need a little bit to cool down and for the emotion to go out, and then start thinking about [it] more," Datsyuk said.