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Patrick Kane

Snapshots: Kane, Dahlin, Durzi

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The Detroit Red Wings have announced that legendary winger Patrick Kane will make his debut with the club in their Thursday night matchup against the San Jose Sharks. The game will also mark Kane’s return from the hip resurfacing surgery that he underwent on June 1st.

Kane will look to become the third NHL player to return from a hip resurfacing surgery, with top centerman Nicklas Backstrom representing the second to ever return. Backstrom made it back for the second half of the 2022-23 season, and eight games this season, but is currently on a leave of absence from the Washington Capitals due to complications with his injury.

Thursday night will mark only the 20th regular-season game that Kane has played outside of the Chicago Blackhawks organization. He joined the New York Rangers at last season’s trade deadline, appearing in 19 games and scoring 12 points with the club. These performances brought his career totals to 1180 games, 451 goals, and 1237 points. Kane was originally the first-overall selection in the 2007 NHL Draft.

Other notes from around the league:

Morning Notes: Kane, Hartman, Meier

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TSN’s Pierre LeBrun shared on the latest episode of Insider Trading that Patrick Kane could be moved at the trade deadline if Detroit doesn’t hang on to their playoff contention. LeBrun continued by saying that Kane’s agent, Pat Brisson, and Wings general manager, Steve Yzerman, discussed all possibilities prior to the future Hall of Famer signing in Motor City, including the chance of Kane needing to find a new home to ensure another playoff berth.

Kane is signed to a one-year contract and clearly hoping to make it an efficient year. The 35-year-old winger has already had 11 Stanley Cup Playoff appearances through his 16-year, winning the Cup three times with the Chicago Blackhawks. But he’s missed much of the postseason over the last six years, only seeing the playoffs in 2019-20, with the Blackhawks, and in 2022-23, with the New York Rangers.

If Detroit isn’t able to maintain their playoff spot, the Insider Trading panel mentioned the Buffalo Sabres as a potential alternative for Kane. The panel shared that Buffalo doesn’t lack any interest in the star winger, enjoying the strong veteran presence that he would bring to a locker room. The Sabres and Red Wings are bound to be close in the playoff race come the end of the year, with the teams currently separated by five points in the standings.

Other notes from around the league:

Snapshots: Kane, Perry, Near

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Yesterday, in a rare high-profile signing in the month of November, the Patrick Kane free agency saga finally came to its conclusion as the former MVP decided to sign with the Detroit Red Wings on a one-year, $2.75MM prorated contract for the remainder of the season. After recovering from off-season hip surgery, Kane took to the ice for the first time today with his new team, in hopes of being ready for game action in the near future.

Commenting on exactly that, Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press reports that Kane will more than likely make his Red Wings debut next Tuesday, as the team takes on his hometown Buffalo Sabres. With three games in between, Detroit will conveniently match up against both of Kane’s former teams, playing the New York Rangers tonight, and the Chicago Blackhawks tomorrow.

Even when he does begin playing in regular action, it will likely take some time for Kane to get readjusted to the speed of the game, especially against a high-flying team such as the Sabres. After appearing in 74 games last season, Kane has not skated in an NHL game in over 200 days, as his last game came with the Rangers in the 2023-24 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Other snapshots:

  • In a very mysterious and convoluted report from yesterday, the Chicago Blackhawks held a press conference regarding the team’s decision to terminate the contract of Corey Perry. After having been on unconditional waivers for the last 24 hours, Chris Johnston of TSN is reporting that Perry has officially cleared, and is now an unrestricted free agent. Although he is now free to sign with any team, it is incredibly unlikely that Perry will find a new destination given that his contract was terminated ’with cause’.
  • In June, long-time Commissioner of the Western Hockey League, Ron Robinson, announced he would be stepping down from his position at the conclusion of the 2023-24 WHL season. Seemingly having found their replacement as league Commissioner, Darren Dreger of TSN is reporting that Dan Near will be taking over the role, and the league will announce the decision tomorrow. Near, who has been serving as a Global Senior Director with Adidas since January of this year, has previously served in the NHL’s league offices from 2006-2016.

Detroit Red Wings Sign Patrick Kane

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11/29/23: The Red Wings have now made their signing of Kane official.

11/28/23: According to The Athletic’s Chris Johnston, free agent forward and future Hall of Famer Patrick Kane is signing with the Detroit Red Wings.

Should this report end up accurate, Kane would be landing with a historic rival of his longtime club, the Chicago Blackhawks.

According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, Kane’s deal is a one-year, $2.75MM pact.

It would also mean Kane will have played for half of the league’s original six teams, after spending part of last season with the New York Rangers.

According to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, Kane “was very impressed” with Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde, and more specifically his “hockey acumen” and “vision for Detroit.”

By signing in Detroit, Kane has re-united himself with one of his favorite former teammates: Alex DeBrincat. DeBrincat, who the Red Wings acquired in the offseason, has had the best seasons of his career on a line with Kane and is currently off to a hot start with 12 goals and 20 points in 20 games.

While DeBrincat has slowed down a bit recently, the arrival of Kane will likely give him a major boost, assuming Kane comes back and plays up to his career standard. That’s far from a guarantee after offseason hip surgery, especially if one considers the impact hip resurfacing surgery had on Nicklas Backstrom.

At the moment, the Red Wings have almost $7MM in cap space to work with according to CapFriendly. As a result, they should be able to comfortably fit the cost of Kane’s contract, assuming the cap hit isn’t excessively expensive.

As for where Kane fits in Detroit’s lineup, one has to assume Lalonde would begin by placing Kane with DeBrincat on the team’s second line, a unit currently centered by J.T. Compher. Doing so would displace Michael Rasmussen, but the 2017 ninth-overall pick’s six points in 20 games is hardly a convincing argument to retain his top-six job over a player like Kane.

Of course, Lalonde could also choose to not immediately go with the DeBrincat/Kane partnership, and instead play Kane on the first line with Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond, replacing Joe Veleno.

In any case, the Red Wings could be getting a significant offensive boost with this signing. Assuming Kane can return to something close to what he was in Chicago and at times on Broadway, Detroit is getting the type of mid-season reinforcement that usually costs teams quality prospects and/or draft picks.

Although Kane’s play in the defensive end has led to questions regarding how much overall value he actually provides, there’s a reason most contending teams would eagerly accept adding Kane to their top-six. He’s one of the defining offensive talents of this most recent era of NHL hockey, and is nearly point-per-game in the postseason across a sample size of nearly 150 games.

The Red Wings are eager to emerge out of their rebuild and return to the playoffs, perhaps making a serious run at the Stanley Cup as well. Adding Kane almost undoubtedly helps them in that pursuit.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Panthers To Focus On Extending Pending Free Agents

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ESPN’s Kevin Weekes tweeted today that he expects the Florida Panthers to turn their attention to their pending unrestricted free agents after missing out on signing forward Patrick Kane. The Panthers didn’t have much available cap space to sign the three-time Stanley Cup champion for this season and could face a shortage of it next summer when they try to negotiate long-term extensions with some of the top free agents available.

Sam Reinhart, Brandon Montour, and Gustav Forsling are all set to hit the market on July 1st, 2024, and could take a sizeable chunk of the $28.8MM in cap space the Panthers are projected to have available next summer.

Reinhart has scored at least 22 goals in six consecutive seasons and is coming off back-to-back 30-goal campaigns. He is currently on pace for the first 100-point season of his career, although it is early in the season. But if the 28-year-old can keep up a pace close to that he could be looking at a long-term deal in the range of $8MM-9MM annually.

Montour on the other hand is a difficult projection to make. He had 73 points last season in 80 games but has never topped 40 points in any other season during his eight-year NHL career. He missed the Panthers’ first 16 games of the season and has had a slow start offensively with just a single assist in five games thus far. He will most likely see a sharp increase on his next contract from the $3.5MM cap hit that he currently carries, but much of his future earning potential will be decided by the direction the rest of this season takes.

Forsling is the final high-profile free agent the Panthers will need to sign next summer and after a pair of solid seasons in Florida will be looking to cash in. The 27-year-old plays in all situations and has really seen his offensive game improve over the last couple of years. He is currently carrying a cap hit that is a shade over $2.6MM and could command an additional $3MM-$4MM per season given that he has proved he can be a top-pairing defenseman for the Panthers.

Florida will be hard-pressed to sign all three players as they will have other areas of need to consider going forward. Aaron Ekblad will be a free agent in the summer of 2025 as will Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe.

What Your Team Is Thankful For: Buffalo Sabres

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As Thanksgiving and the holiday season approaches, PHR will be taking a look at what teams are thankful for in 2023-24. There also might be a few things your team would like down the road. We’ll examine what’s gone well in the early going and what could improve as the season rolls on for the Buffalo Sabres.

Who are the Sabres thankful for?

Rasmus Dahlin.

The Sabres raised a lot of eyebrows when they signed the 23-year-old to an eight-year $88MM contract extension back in October that made him one of the highest-paid defensemen in NHL history. The signing made sense from Dahlin’s perspective as he cashed in on a career year and became one of the highest paid players in the league.

From the Sabres perspective, there were a few question marks. Dahlin has never finished above eighth place in Norris Trophy voting and has only garnered consideration one time. However, the Sabres bet on Dahlin’s continued development going forward and are hoping he will turn into a perennial Norris Trophy contender throughout the life of the deal.

A month after signing the deal, Dahlin has given the Sabres everything they could ask for. He has averaged almost 25 minutes a night of ice time, playing in all situations. He has been terrific for the Sabres at even strength, while remaining a threat on the power play and has even worked on the penalty kill, putting up solid numbers in the process.

Dahlin has really demonstrated his value to Buffalo while center Tage Thompson has been out of action. The Sabres desperately needed someone to step up in Thompson’s absence and so far, Dahlin has been one of the leaders to fill the void. In Sunday night’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks Dahlin had a goal and two assists and was pivotal in the Sabres ending their three-game losing streak

Dahlin posted 73 points in 78 games last season while averaging almost 26 minutes a night in ice time, this season his numbers thus far are almost identical. He is averaging about a minute less of ice time per game, but offensively he is on pace to come close to last season’s totals. Dahlin has four goals and 12 assists in the first 19 games of the season and has been much more physical and has also been more responsible with the puck than in seasons past.

What are the Sabres thankful for?

Their fanbase.

Buffalo sports fans are some of the most enduring fans in the world. You don’t lose four Super Bowls in a row without learning a thing or two about remaining passionate in the face of adversity. But still, credit to the fans of the Buffalo Sabres for still turning up in droves year after year to see a team that hasn’t made the Stanley Cup playoffs for 12 straight years.

Some people will point to the Sabres attendance this year and say that their numbers are down (which they are), but for the most part, the fans are still turning up in person to watch a team that hasn’t given them anything to cheer about for over a decade. The Sabres crowds might be smaller than in years past, but the crowd is still loud and passionate and firmly behind the team.

It will be interesting to see what the attendance numbers look like for the remainder of the season as Buffalo came into this year with playoff aspirations and thus far hasn’t looked like a playoff team. The Sabres have started the year 8-9-2 and if their season starts to go sideways, they could see more nights where there are over 5,000 empty seats in the KeyBank Center like we saw a few weeks ago.

What would the Sabres be even more thankful for?

A solution to their three-goalie situation.

The Sabres have been rolling this season with three goaltenders which hasn’t been an ideal set of circumstances for a team that needs help in the goal-scoring department. The Sabres have been unable to bring up any of their scoring prospects from the AHL because of the roster spot being occupied by the third goaltender. And make no mistake, Jiri Kulich and Isak Rosen are both recent first-round picks that could both help the Sabres with their scoring woes.

The three-goalie situation also hasn’t been great for all the goaltenders involved either. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has been solid thus far for Buffalo going 4-3-1 with a .911 save percentage, but Eric Comrie has been uneven going 1-2 with an .898 save percentage. While all those numbers are pretty run-of-the-mill, poor Devon Levi has struggled to gain any traction with a 3-4-1 record and a .879 save percentage.

The solution to the situation would likely be unpopular in Buffalo, but it would be the most practical. One goaltender needs to be sent to the minors and given their contract situations it would most likely be Levi as he is exempt from waivers and could be sent down without the risk of the Sabres losing him. Luukkonen and Comrie could be sent down to the AHL, but they would likely be claimed by another team should Buffalo elect to do that.

Levi doesn’t exactly deserve a demotion, but given Buffalo’s struggle to score, his contract situation and play, it would be the most pragmatic move that Buffalo could make.

What should be on the Sabres holiday wish list?

An offensive forward.

As I mentioned before, the Sabres need to score more, and an offensive-minded forward would go a long way to adding some punch to their offensive attack. The Sabres do boast a fair amount of young offensively gifted players, but many of them are just learning the pro hockey game and have yet to find the consistency that Buffalo needs to get back to the playoffs.

The Sabres have been tied to hometown boy Patrick Kane, and while Kane certainly has the offensive pedigree, he is a bit of an unknown given the situation with his hip recovery. If he could regain some of the form he showed in Chicago just two years ago, Kane could be a solution to Buffalo’s problems, but it would be asking a lot from a player who is coming off major surgery.

The fact that Buffalo is in on Kane is an indication that they would like to add a high-end offensive forward which should be encouraging to Sabres fans. If Buffalo can find space to bring up one of their young scoring forwards from the AHL and find an offensively talented forward from outside the organization, they might be able to finally optimize their offense.

Metropolitan Notes: Kane, Hischier, Ristolainen

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ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported today on The Drop that unrestricted free agent forward Patrick Kane reportedly would like to make another run with the New York Rangers but at this point Rangers general manager Chris Drury has been apprehensive due to the team’s lack of cap space as well as the chemistry they’ve build under head coach Peter Laviolette.

Kane was unhappy with last season and his inability to be healthy due to his hip injury. According to Kaplan, Kane felt like he played most of the season on one leg and never had a chance to be an impact player.

Kaplan didn’t rule out the possibility of Kane returning to the Rangers but said that if he were to return it would be similar to last season when Kane essentially forced a trade to the Rangers. Obviously, this wouldn’t be a trade, but if Kane was willing to take a low salary, he could force the Rangers hand as the upside of signing the three-time cup winner might be too much for the Rangers to ignore.

In other Metropolitan notes:

  • New Jersey Devils reporter Amanda Stein tweeted that center Nico Hischier will travel with the club but will not dress in tomorrow night’s game against the Detroit Red Wings. The 24-year-old returned to practice yesterday signalling that his return could come soon as he battles his way back from an upper-body injury he suffered on October 27th in a game against the Buffalo Sabres. The Devils have struggled with Hischier out of the lineup, going 4-5 in his absence. The 2017 first-overall pick struggled to start the year with just two goals in seven games but had a career year last year with 80 points in 81 games.
  • Jordan Hall of NBC Sports Philadelphia is reporting that Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen was in a regular jersey at practice today, indicating that he can take contact. Ristolainen’s return to a regular practice jersey signals that he is close to making his season debut for the Flyers as he has been on the shelf since suffering an undisclosed injury during training camp. When he is healthy enough to play, the Flyers will need to activate him off LTIR and make room available on their active roster which will likely mean a demotion for a player such as Louis Belpedio.

Rangers Not Interested In Signing Patrick Kane

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The New York Rangers are not interested in bringing back free-agent winger Patrick Kane for a continued stint with the team, Larry Brooks of the New York Post reported late Tuesday night. While Chris Johnston of TSN reported last week that the Rangers were one of four Eastern Conference teams interested in the three-time Stanley Cup champion, and Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff said the Rangers had interest in Kane last month, Brooks claims the Rangers “have never been in the mix” for the almost-35-year-old.

Salary cap considerations were always going to be a prohibiting factor in a potential Kane reunion in the Big Apple. Carrying a 20-man roster, plus factoring in the cap hits of the injured Filip Chytil and Adam Fox, the Rangers have less than $650K in projected cap space, which couldn’t even accommodate a league-minimum salary of $775K.

As Brooks points out, there’s also an extremely fair concern around Kane’s health post-hip-resurfacing surgery – a concern the Rangers witnessed first-hand last season after Kane’s post-deadline stint with the team was underwhelming. While whatever issue that was plaguing him has theoretically been fixed, no NHLer has returned to their previous level of effectiveness after undergoing the procedure.

There’s also something to be said about the long-awaited emergence of Alexis Lafrenière. New head coach Peter Laviolette has done what Rangers fans have clamored for since the team selected him first-overall in 2020 – move him to his off-wing in order to give him a role in the team’s top six. Playing on the right side of a line with Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck, Lafrenière ranks third on the team in goals with seven and has 11 points in 14 contests while averaging 16:32 per game.

His emergence has certainly eliminated a potential need (and ice time) for Kane in the Rangers lineup, something GM Chris Drury likely recognizes. Lafrenière is already out-pacing Kane’s stint with the Rangers last season – in 19 games, the longtime Blackhawk had five goals and 12 points while averaging 17:29 per game.

Kane has reportedly begun the process of meeting with teams as he prepares to sign a contract, which will likely be done within a week. As of now, the Florida Panthers, who would have salary cap concerns of their own to sort out, appear the frontrunner for his services, according to a report from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet on Monday.

Latest On Patrick Kane’s Free Agency

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John Shannon of The Bob McCown podcast tweeted that unrestricted free agent forward Patrick Kane met with the Toronto Maple Leafs today. While the news is sure to get fans and hockey pundits talking, it is just the beginning of the process. Kane has been training in nearby Oakville, Ontario and likely talked to the Maple Leafs first because of proximity.

Shannon followed up his first tweet by adding that the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars and Buffalo Sabres appear to be on the list of interest teams. While most of those teams have come up before in rumors, Dallas and Tampa Bay are a couple of new teams on the list.

ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski further added to the Kane speculation tonight as he believes that Kane will interview up to eight teams this week including the Detroit Red Wings and New York Rangers who have both been mentioned in recent weeks.

While every team in the league is likely to have an interest in a player with Kane’s pedigree, Kane is looking to play specifically for a cup contender. The veteran of 1180 NHL games does have three Stanley Cups to his name but is looking to add another milestone to his hall-of-fame resume.

Kane does come with some question marks though as he is coming off a very serious hip surgery after a down season last year with the Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks. The 34-year-old had 21 goals and 36 assists last season in 73 games but did add six points in seven playoff games. The type of surgery Kane had does not have a strong track record of success in hockey players which further complicates any contract talks that Kane might have with interested teams.

Florida Panthers In Aggressive Pursuit Of Patrick Kane

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A little over half a week ago, it was reported that on his way back from hip surgery, Patrick Kane had been linked to four teams within the Eastern Conference; the Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, and New York Rangers. Most likely looking for his best chance to compete for another Stanley Cup towards the end of his career, the Panthers and Rangers seem to be the best potential fits for Kane moving forward.

In his podcast, 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said, “We’re starting to get close to the Patrick Kane decision, I think this week he’s going to start talking to some teams. Bill Zito, the GM of Florida, has been one of the most aggressive GMs when it comes to Kane” (X Link).

It’s relatively unsurprising to see that the Panthers are becoming more aggressive in their pursuit of Kane, as although the defending Eastern Conference Champions are off to a solid 9-4-1 start, they still sit 19th in the league in GF/G. So far this year, their defense (notably missing both Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad), as well as their goaltending have been the driving factor in their entry out of the gates this season.

However, Florida will have a difficult time fitting Kane into the mix, as when Montour and Ekblad eventually come back into the fold, the team will have less than $100K available to them in cap space. If Kane is willing to sign a league minimum contract for one season, the Panthers should be able to fit Kane in, but they will have to make some moves to make that happen.

Overall, even if the Panthers are the most aggressive in bringing Kane into their lineup, that does not necessarily mean he will end up in Florida. Being a hometown native of Buffalo, as well as a former Ranger, Kane should have a certain comfortability in returning home to New York state if he so chooses. Also, as has been typical over the last several seasons during his tenure as General Manager of the Detroit Red Wings, Steve Yzerman has notably kept his cards very close to the chest.

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