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Will Pavel Datsyuk leave Red Wings, NHL? We’ll find out Saturday

Detroit Red Wings v Tampa Bay Lightning - Game Five

TAMPA, FL - APRIL 21: Pavel Datsyuk #13 of the Detroit Red Wings checks his stick before a face-off against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period in Game Five of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amalie Arena on April 21, 2016 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

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Pavel Datsyuk will announces his plans for next season on Saturday, according to a variety of outlets and his own agent. At the moment, it sure sounds like we’ve seen the last of the magical forward’s days in the NHL.

Datsyuk met with Detroit Red Wings GM Ken Holland on Friday after postponing the discussion for a week.

Reports and gut reactions indicate that the most likely scenario is that Datsyuk will share the news that he’ll stay in Russia instead of returning to the Red Wings in 2016-17.

Here’s a selection of well-connected reports:

As a refresher, Datsyuk has a year and $7.5 million cap hit remaining on his contract with the Red Wings. General Fanager lists his actual 2015-16 salary as $5.5 million, so Detroit would be wise to direct its aggressive trade pitches toward teams hoping to hit the cap floor.