Pavel Datsyuk signs two-year deal with KHL's SKA St. Petersburg

Veteran forward Pavel Datsyuk signed a two-year deal with SKA St. Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League on Friday.

The deal is worth $7.6 million, according to NHL analyst Aaron Ward.

Datsyuk, 37, elected to leave the NHL to return to his native Russia for family reasons, prompting the Detroit Red Wings to make a draft-day trade with the Arizona Coyotes to rid themselves of his cap hit.

A four-time Lady Byng Trophy winner and three-time Selke recipient, Datsyuk will see a few familiar faces with SKA St. Petersburg in former NHLer Ilya Kovalchuk and Russian national team coach Oleg Znarok.

Datsyuk, who was a Hart Trophy finalist in 2008-09, collected 314 goals and 604 assists in 953 games with the Red Wings.