Pavel Datsyuk Pavel Valerievich Datsyuk ( , ; born July 20 , 1978 ) is a professional ice hockey player from Russia and alternate captain for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . He is known for his stick - handling and is considered the best two - way forward in the game today , having won the Frank J . Selke Trophy in the 2007 – 08 , 2008 – 09 , and 2009 – 10 NHL season s . Datsyuk also won four consecutive Lady Byng Memorial Trophies for performance and sportsmanship . He was nominated for the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league ' s most valuable player following the 2008 – 09 season . Datsyuk won the Stanley Cup in 2002 and 2008 with the Red Wings . Early years . Datsyuk was born in Sverdlovsk ( Cвердловск ) ( now Yekaterinburg ) , in the Urals Mountains region of Russia . Pavel ' s nickname is " Pasha " which his parents gave to him at an early age . His childhood had more than its fair share of difficulties , especially at the age of 12 , when his mother died . While Datsyuk displayed above - average hockey skills , he was often overlooked by scouts because of his smaller size . He began playing for the farm club of Dynamo Yekaterinburg in the mid - 1990s , though he seemed headed for an undistinguished career until noted Olympic trainer Vladimir Krikunov began coaching the team . The boy “ with the twitchy walk ” caught the eye of Krikunov , but not on the ice . Instead , Datsyuk excelled on the soccer field , where his anticipation , vision , and intelligence were more apparent . Under Krikunov , Datsyuk evolved into a particularly efficient two - way player , and he began to draw wider attention among Russian hockey fans . Despite his early successes , however , he went undrafted in the 1996 and 1997 NHL drafts . Playing career . RSL . Datsyuk was first noticed by Red Wings Director of European Scouting Håkan Andersson in the summer of 1997 – 98 . Andersson was in Moscow to scout Dmitri Kalinin , but the one who caught his eye was Datsyuk , " this little guy on the other team . " Andersson made another trip to see Datsyuk and would have gone a third time ; however his flight was cancelled because of a storm . A scout from the St . Louis Blues was on the plane as well , and as a result of that storm Andersson believes he is the only NHL scout to have seen Datsyuk play prior to the 1998 NHL Entry Draft , when the Red Wings drafted him 171st overall . NHL . When Datsyuk began his NHL career for the Red Wings , his mentors - including Soviet stars Igor Larionov and Sergei Fedorov , as well as Detroit captain Steve Yzerman - helped him learn his way around the NHL . He was put on a line with Brett Hull and Boyd Devereaux and had a moderately productive first year . The length and difficulty of the NHL season got to him eventually , causing him to sit out a clump of games at the end of the year in preparation for the playoffs . He contributed three goals and three assists to the Red Wings ' Stanley Cup run . Expectations were high for Datsyuk ' s second season , particularly with the addition of another highly touted prospect to the team , Henrik Zetterberg . Zetterberg replaced Devereaux on the Datsyuk - Hull line , and the famous version of the " Two Kids and an Old Goat Line " was born . He played only 64 games because of a knee injury but ended up with 51 points in the 2003 season . His playoff performance was a bit disappointing that year , but the same could be said about the entire Red Wings team . The team was swept by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the first round , and Datsyuk was held pointless . The departure of Sergei Fedorov in the 2003 off - season made room for Datsyuk to rise to prominence on the Red Wings . He took full advantage of his extra ice time , where his playmaking skills elevated him to the ranks of legitimate scorers in the NHL . Datsyuk earned a spot in the 2004 NHL All - Star Game . In the playoffs , he had no goals and 6 assists through 12 games before the Wings were eliminated in the second round . He was a restricted free agent during the 2004 – 05 off - season but could not reach a deal with the Red Wings despite repeated statements by his agent , Gary Greenstin , indicating his desire to stay in Detroit . He chose not to go into salary arbitration and played with HC Dynamo Moscow during the 2004 - 05 NHL lockout . On September 4 , 2005 , Datsyuk signed a one - year contract with Avangard Omsk of the Russian Superleague ( RSL ) , and Moscow Dynamo matched the offer two days later . On September 19 , 2005 , the day the arbitration committee of the Russian Superleague was set to determine which club had Datsyuk ' s rights , Datsyuk agreed to a two - year deal with the Red Wings for a total of US $ 7 . 8 million . During the 2005 – 06 season , his high level of play combined with his sportsmanship ( he recorded just 22 penalty minutes the entire season ) won him the Lady Byng Trophy , the first of four consecutive awards . Datsyuk also earned a spot on the Russian team for the 2006 Winter Olympics . During the 2006 – 07 season , Datsyuk debuted Reebok ' s new hockey stick with holes bored into the shaft to make it more aerodynamic , dubbed the 9KO . He completed the season matching his previous campaign ' s total of 87 points . Prior to the beginning of the playoffs on April 6 , 2007 , Pavel signed a 7 - year contract extension with the Red Wings for US $ 46 . 9 million . He helped the Red Wings get to the Western Conference finals against the eventual Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks , contributing 16 points in 18 games . In 2007 – 08 , Pavel was voted by the NHL fans , along with teammates Nicklas Lidström and Henrik Zetterberg , to start for the Western Conference in the 2008 NHL All - Star Game at Philips Arena in Atlanta . He went on to have a career year with a team - high 97 points in 82 games , also leading Red Wings forwards in blocked shots . In leading the team in scoring , he joined Ted Lindsay , Gordie Howe and Steve Yzerman as the only players in franchise history to do so in 3 consecutive seasons . Going into the playoffs , he scored his first career NHL hat trick on May 12 , 2008 , in a 5 – 2 win over the Dallas Stars in game three of the Western Conference Finals , en route to a 2008 Stanley Cup Finals meeting with the Pittsburgh Penguins . In game six , Datsyuk recorded two assists in a 3 – 2 win to clinch the team ' s 11th Stanley Cup title and its fourth in eleven years . Having led the NHL in 2007 – 08 with a plus - minus of 41 and 144 takeaways ( 58 more than Mike Modano second - best total of 86 ) , Datsyuk was awarded the Frank J . Selke Trophy as the league ' s best defensive forward . With just 20 penalty minutes , he was also awarded the Lady Byng Trophy . In the voting for the Selke , Datsyuk received 537 points ( 43 first place votes ) while John Madden of the New Jersey Devils received 447 points and Datsyuk ' s linemate Henrik Zetterberg received 425 points . In the voting for the Lady Byng , Datsyuk received 985 points ( 75 first place votes ) . In addition , Datsyuk became the first NHL player to win the Lady Byng Trophy three consecutive times in over 70 years . Frank Boucher of the New York Rangers was the last player to do so , winning the Lady Byng from 1933 to 1935 . Datsyuk and Ron Francis are the only players to have been awarded both the Selke and Lady Byng trophies during their careers . Datsyuk was selected to his third NHL All - Star Game in 2009 , but because of a hip injury he did not attend . However , as per a new league policy that states players must demonstrate injury by missing at least one game prior to the All - Star Game , Datsyuk was suspended one game , along with teammate Nicklas Lidström , for not attending . Datsyuk finished the 2008 - 09 season with 97 points ( 32 goals and 65 assists ) , matching his career high . He won the Frank J . Selke Trophy , beating out Philadelphia ' s Mike Richards and Vancouver ' s Ryan Kesler . He also won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy for the fourth consecutive season . Datsyuk also received a nomination for the Best NHL Player Award at the ESPY s but lost to Sidney Crosby . As a tribute to Ruslan Salei , Datsyuk wore jersey # 24 during the 2011 preseason . International play . Played for Russia in : International statistics