Conflicting reports regarding a potential return to the NHL for Pavel Datsyuk.

Well would this not make for a rather interesting story? 

According to a recent report from TSN National Hockey League insider Bob McKenzie, the insider has begun to hear what he describes as "idle chatter" regarding a potential return to the NHL for long time Detroit Red Wings' star Pavel Datsyuk. The news is shocking on many levels, not the least of which is the circumstanced under which Datsyuk left the league in the first place.

For starters Datsyuk will not be eligible to return to the National Hockey League until after the July 1st 2019 deadline on his current NHL deal. In theory Datsyuk could return to playing with the Arizona Coyotes, who currently hold his contract and the final year of his rights, but it seems far more likely that he would wish to return as an unrestricted free agent following July 1st. Datsyuk current NHL contract is in the final year of it's term which means he would be free to sign with any NHL team of his choosing and one has to assume he would be choosing from a short list of contenders. 

When it comes to speculating on which team Datsyuk may choose to sign with the obvious choice would seemingly be the Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings are the only team the superstar forward has ever played for, however with the team in the middle of a rebuild they are trending in a very different direction. Datsyuk will be 41 in July and with the Red Wings getting younger and younger I'm not entirely convinced that they would seriously consider bringing him in to the fold. Additionally Datsyuk himself would likely not view the Red Wings in their current form as a serious contender so that would further diminish the odds of him returning to that organization.

That being said though in spite of the rumors regarding a potential return to the National Hockey League Dan Milstein, Datsyuk's agent, informed McKenzie that there is no truth to the rumors floating around the hockey world at this time.

“Every year we sit down and talk about options but (returning to the) NHL isn’t something he has entertained.”

Could you see Datsyuk coming back for one last run at the Cup?

[pub]