Hudler to KHL?

by Casey Richey on Jul 8, 2009 11:07 AM CDT in News

Apparently Jiri Hudler has signed/agreed to a contract with Moscow Dynamo of the Kontinental Hockey League. This could be a thing to fall back on if he doesn't get a desirable contract with the Red Wings. There's a report on it here. I'll post some more later, got to go to work for now though.

Update (Christy): TSN's sister network in Quebec, RDS, is reporting that Hudler has signed a one-year, $2 million dollar contract with Dynamo. A Kukla's Korner reader gave a rough translation of what was said at the Dynamo-Hudler press conference:

In Detroit there is wasn’t place for me and I didn’t want to go to another club. So i didn’t ask for a trade. Then came Dynamo with their offer.

I started thinking about it and decided to go to Russia. It was tough but this is not a question of life or death. It is only hockey.

Bruce MacLeod of The Macomb Daily believes it's not looking likely that Hudler will return:

Hudler isn't surprising because he wasn't really happy, in my opinion. From being benched for Kopecky in the Western Conference final in 2007 to watching Valtteri Filppula -- who is the same age as Hudler -- get a lucrative long-term contract as a restricted free agent, Hudler knew that he was lower on the Red Wings' pecking order than he wanted to be.

I don't know what to think of this, but if he's doing it as a negotiating ploy I don't see how that would work. We only have so much money under the salary cap and it's not like we can offer him any more than what GM Ken Holland has already. If he really wanted to go play in the KHL, why would he ask his agent to continue to arbitration?

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Finally there are going to be young rookies on the Wings roster.
Hoping for Abdelkader here!!!!
Also I doubt Wings will be as good as they have been for so long

by SumOil on Jul 8, 2009 11:37 AM CDT reply actions

Head Scratcher

I don’t think the KHL pays out the same jingle as the NHL. I thought Huds was going after some money. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

by Bird6 on Jul 8, 2009 1:19 PM CDT reply actions

July 8, Detroit News: Jiri Hudler will not return to the Red Wings next season. Hudler’s agent, Petr Svoboda, contacted Wings general manager Ken Holland on Wednesday and informed Holland that Hudler has accepted a two-year contract with Dynamo Moscow in Russia.

Terms of the deal were not announced, but it was expected that Hudler would double or even triple the $1.1 million he earned with the Wings last season — and all of it would be tax-free.

by NaFedaykin on Jul 8, 2009 11:06 PM CDT up reply actions

Confused...

It just seems… strange…

I’m not sure he nor his agent knows how a salary cap works.

by ZWC11 on Jul 8, 2009 8:26 PM CDT reply actions

Petr Svoboda is an agent?

Thats as surprising to me as hearing about Hudler’s contrakt (yes that was an intentional “k”).

by Ron L. Detroit Sports Nut! on Jul 9, 2009 11:20 AM CDT reply actions

Also confused

He says he doesnt want to go anywhere else yet he is willing to part from the wings to go to the KHL for less money (i would think). He would probably be a 1st line winger too with the space left by hossa. Whats the problem?

by Nutter on Jul 9, 2009 3:01 PM CDT reply actions

Hudler will make more money in Russia. The contract is rumored to be two years with him making $4-5 million tax free each year compared to Detroit’s $2.5-3 million per year offer with taxes.

Hudler wouldn’t have seen time on the top line, but I would’ve expected Babcock to rotate him between the second and third line (probably second with Hossa and Sammy gone).

by Christy on Jul 9, 2009 7:12 PM CDT up reply actions