Written by Mitch Albom at Detroit Free Press.com
Pavel Datsyuk wants to go home. His career has been here. His wealth has been here. His celebrity has been here.
But his heart is somewhere else. It’s in Russia — with his teenage daughter and his roots, both of which he wants replanted into his life.
“I’m thinking I go home after this season,” he said, in a long discussion at the Northville home of his agent and friend, Dan Milstein. “I may not be done with hockey, but — it is hard to say — I think I am done playing in NHL.”
While this may be a shock to fans, it cannot be to the Red Wings. The truth is, Datsyuk has been squirming to go home since 2012, the year he played in Russia during the NHL lockout. Last season he basically told Detroit he was finished, and only the length of his contract, terrific persuasion by general manager Ken Holland and personal involvement from Mike and Marian Ilitch convinced him otherwise.
The tug now, he said, is too strong. He wants his family united. And he wants to end his professional career in the country that taught him the game. Datsyuk, who will be 38 this summer, still has a year left on his Detroit deal, and will have one more discussion with Holland before taking formal action — presumably after the Wings are done with the postseason they qualified for on Saturday. So in theory, the door still has a sliver of light peeking through.
But after two hours with the reserved Russian superstar recently, it was clear his heart and head are already back home.
“I have overstayed,” he said.
Datsyuk, notoriously quiet off the ice, agreed to this interview (conducted in both English and Russian translation) only if the story did not run until after the Wings’ regular season was over, not wishing to distract from the challenging goal of making the playoffs.
To continue reading this article, click here.
