DETROIT – Teams roll the dice on little-known players near the end of the entry draft.

The Detroit Red Wings have unearthed their share of late-round gems, none more brilliant than Pavel Datsyuk, who agreed Tuesday to a three-year, $22.5 million extension.

Hakan Andersson had to jump through hoops to see Datsyuk play a couple of times as a teenager in Russia before convincing the club to select him with the 171st pick in the sixth round in 1998.

Andersson is the Red Wings' longtime director of European scouting, responsible in large part for the drafting of Henrik Zetterberg, Tomas Holmstrom, Johan Franzen and Datsyuk.

The Red Wings have benefited immensely from Andersson' keen eye for talent. He recalled the day Datsyuk caught his eye, which was purely by accident.

“It was his last year as a junior player (1997-98) and I was going to Eastern Russia, to a city called Yekaterinburg, where the Czar was killed in the early 1900s,'' Andersson said. “The player I wanted to see was a defenseman, Dmitri Kalinin, ended up being drafted by Buffalo (18th overall in 1998).''

Kalinin's club, Traktor Chelyabinsk, was playing at Dynamo Yekaterinburg, which, unbeknownst to Andersson, had this really shifty, creative little eye-catching center.

“As the game went on I saw this little centerman who was pretty good,'' Andersson said. “He worked hard up and down the ice, had good hockey sense. He broke up a lot of plays and had good skill. I went away from the game with a report on Kalinin, but also a report on this little kid.''

Andersson, accompanied by a Russian interpreter, attempted to speak to Datsyuk in the Zamboni entrance after the game.

“We wanted to meet with Kalinin because he was a possible first-rounder,'' Andersson said. “But the interpreter knew I was a little interested in Pav, so (Datsyuk) came walking by and he said, 'Are you that No. 13?' They talked briefly in Russian and then (Datsyuk) just took off. The interpreter said, 'He wasn't very interested in talking.' ''

This slick move was just one of many that has made Pavel Datsyuk a magician with the puck.

Andersson went home to Sweden and continued thinking about Datsyuk, where he would fit on the club's list of potential draftees.

“I thought to myself, he's good enough to play on the Russian junior national team,'' Andersson said. “That could be bad because I don't think a lot of people know about him.''

But, Datsyuk didn't make the Russian World Junior team. That was good for the Red Wings because he remained in relative anonymity.

When Yekaterinburg played closer to Moscow, Andersson made another scouting trip, this one solely to see Datsyuk. He impressed again.

In two games, Andersson witnessed a lot of what Red Wings fans have been seeing for 11 seasons.

“Great hands, hockey sense, quick skater, little deceptive speed,'' Andersson said. “I don't think he was more than 5-9 or 5-10, skating just a little awkward. But the thinking and the hands were … ''

Amazing could be a word used to finish his thought.

“There was one sequence where they were on a five-on-four and they were passing the puck around and somehow the other team got a two-on-one,'' Andersson said. “Pav was the second guy back. He skated as hard as he could, and you could just see his head going as he was skating, checking out the situation. Just when they went across the blue line, he threw himself on the ice and broke it up.''

Hakan Andersson

Andersson said Datsyuk was “unbelievable'' at reading the play.

“One time I saw him, the defenseman was skating back to get the puck, (Datsyuk) was behind him 10-15 feet,'' Andersson said. “All the sudden, instead of forechecking, he took off to the left. Somehow he figured out the defenseman was going to get the puck and rim it out that way. There was Pav, waiting for the puck. It was unreal.''

It took a lot of dedication and wherewithal to scout in Russia in those days. That's an edge the Red Wings had with Andersson.

“In Russia, when you're going to see a player who lives outside of Moscow, it's a big process,'' Andersson said. “First I have to apply for this visa; they're really strict in Russia.

“There's hardly ever a flight (to smaller cities). The flight out of Sweden arrives in the evening in Moscow, so usually you come in, stay the night and fly (to the smaller Russian city) the next day. So it's a two-day job just to get to a game. And the same thing coming back. So every time you wanted to see a player outside of Moscow it's like a three- or four-day project.''

Andersson wanted to get a third look at Datsyuk before draft day, so he flew to Moscow later that season, only to get stuck in a snowstorm.

“We sat on the plane, it was snowing like crazy,'' Andersson said. “They had a big deicing machine that I will never forget. All the sudden I hear this thing that sounds like a big hair dryer. I look out and there's a ring of fire probably four meters high. There's flames going into the middle of the ring. Behind the ring they have a big fan. That's their deicing machine.

“They're blowing hot air so everything melts, but there's gasoline in those wings and that thing was pretty much on the wings. I was nervous. We sat another couple hours. At 4, they said the flight was canceled.''

That was fine with Andersson. He had seen enough of Datsyuk to feel comfortable making a case to select him.

“I saw him twice, he was good twice, I'll put him on my list,'' Andersson said. “It was a bit of a risk.''

The next step was convincing Jim Nill, the Red Wings' assistant general manager at the time, who had the final say on draft-day selections, and GM Ken Holland.

“Before draft day I talked to Kenny,'' Andersson said. “He looked at my list and said, 'What's this name?' So I explained who (Datsyuk) was, what I'd seen and what I thought, and he said, 'OK, keep him on the list.'

“As the draft went on we finally got to the point where all the 'good' names were gone. Kenny had the confidence in me to let me (choose), so we drafted (Datsyuk) based on what I said.''

Holland said the team relies on its scouts to step up and make a case for a player in the later rounds.

“Hakan Andersson knows when to fight (for a player), and if he has a player he really likes he'll be banging the drum with Joe McDonnell (director of amateur scouting) and Jim Nill (now the GM of the Dallas Stars),'' Holland said. “They respect Hakan's skill and experience. When Hakan is fighting for a player, they'll listen.''

Fifteen years later, Datsyuk continues to dangle the puck like no one in the game and dazzle audiences like few can. And the man who discovered him couldn't be more gratified.

“It makes you happy,'' Andersson said. “We're in the business of winning. We all want good players and when they turn out to be like him, I mean, he's the cornerstone of our team, so it's a good feeling for the Red Wings.''