Red Wings trade Datsyuk's contract to Coyotes, retain no salary
The Detroit Red Wings have found a taker for the final year of Pavel Datsyuk's contract.
The Red Wings traded Datsyuk and the 16th overall pick in Friday's draft to the Arizona Coyotes for the 20th and 53rd selections, as well as forward Joe Vitale.
None of Datsyuk's $7.5-million cap hit will be retained by the Red Wings, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reports.
Detroit now has about $19 million in cap space, while Arizona has about $26.7 million even after absorbing Datsyuk's deal.
Chayka on Datsyuk: “Using our assets. Everyone uses cash to get players. We have cap space. Why don’t we use that to get someone we like?”
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) June 25, 2016
Last weekend, the 37-year-old announced his intent to play in the KHL next season.
His cap figure remains on the books under CBA rules because he signed a three-year extension after turning 35.
The Coyotes drafted defenseman Jakob Chychrun with the 16th overall pick, and the Red Wings chose blue-liner Dennis Cholowski with the 20th selection.
Vitale is not expected to play next season due to post-concussion syndrome, Coyotes general manager John Chayka said Friday night, according to the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette's Seth Rorabaugh.
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