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HOCKEY

HOCKEY; Fedorov Leaves Wings To Sign With Ducks

Sergei Fedorov signed a five-year, $40 million contract with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks today, leaving Detroit after 13 seasons to reunite with Bryan Murray, the Ducks' general manager, who was his first N.H.L. coach.

Fedorov helped the Red Wings win three Stanley Cups, but two weeks ago his agent, Pat Brisson, said Fedorov, a free-agent center, would not return to Detroit.

''I do not have any bitterness leaving Detroit,'' Fedorov said by telephone from Moscow. ''I enjoyed my years in Detroit. I'm going to miss the fans. They were great to me.

''It's been a wonderful ride, but everybody in life at some point has to change direction or place or time, and this is absolutely normal for me to change and move on.''

The deal with Anaheim includes two years guaranteed and three more at Fedorov's option, a Mighty Ducks spokesman, Alex Gilchrist, said.

The Red Wings had offered Fedorov the same amount of money, but for four years. The N.H.L.'s collective bargaining agreement expires in September 2004, which affected Fedorov's decision.

''I got into free agency at a bad time with the C.B.A. expiring,'' he said. ''It was a very big struggle with Detroit. If we didn't have the C.B.A. expiring, I don't think Detroit would have tried to sign me so quickly.''

A six-time All-Star, Fedorov had 36 goals and 47 assists for a team-leading 83 points last season. He won the Hart trophy as the N.H.L.'s most valuable player in 1994 and was twice named the league's best defensive forward.

''He's one of the best defensive players in hockey,'' Murray said. ''He loves to make plays, but defensively he does the job as well as anyone. He's a strong, hard-working guy. This guy can play for a number of years.''

Fedorov, 33, has 400 goals and 554 assists in his N.H.L. career -- all with Detroit. He helped the Red Wings win the Cup in 1997, 1998 and 2002.

''I would like to thank Sergei for his 13 years with the Detroit Red Wings and wish him well in the future,'' Detroit General Manager Ken Holland said in a statement. ''We worked very hard over the past eight months to keep Sergei in Detroit, and we are disappointed he did not choose to remain a Red Wing, but in the end it was simply not meant to be.''

Fedorov admitted that if his free agency had come up a few years ago, he probably would have re-signed with Detroit.

A version of this article appears in print on  , Section 8, Page 8 of the National edition with the headline: HOCKEY; Fedorov Leaves Wings To Sign With Ducks. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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