Rangers Were Among Patrick Kane’s Prefered Destinations Before Vladimir Tarasenko Trade
Patrick Kane’s tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks is coming to an end as the impending unrestricted free agent nears completion of his eight-year, $84-million contract. But one team he likely won’t be traded to is the New York Rangers.
The Rangers, previously linked to Kane in trade rumours, completed a blockbuster deal with the St. Louis Blues on Thursday, acquiring Vladimir Tarasenko in a four-player trade. In doing so, general manager Chris Drury added a six-time 30-goal scorer to his roster and eliminated the need to continue pursuing Kane.
With Tarasenko inserted into New York’s top-six forward group, the 31-year-old should dramatically increase the club’s scoring ability, which currently ranks 13th (3.2 goals for per game) league-wide. As a former Stanley Cup champion, he also adds valuable playoff experience.
Kane, however, wasn’t pleased when he heard about the Tarasenko trade, meaning his chances of joining the Rangers had decreased significantly. And he didn’t hide his feelings when asked by local reporters on Friday.
“It’s not like the happiest I’ve been to hear about a trade,” Kane said following Friday’s morning skate. “I think the Rangers are a team that you definitely pay attention to and definitely are intrigued by, for obvious reasons. Obviously, they made a move to get him and another big defenseman, so you’ve got to respect them going out and trying to make their team better.”
The 34-year-old confirmed he hasn’t officially agreed to waive his no-move clause yet, though he is speaking regularly to his agent Pat Brisson about what steps to take next.
One of those will include submitting a list of preferred trade destinations to Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson. But that discussion isn’t expected to occur for another few weeks.
Had the Rangers not acquired Tarasenko, they almost certainly would’ve been featured on Kane’s list of franchises for whom he’d waive his no-move clause.
“If things were going to happen, that was a team I was definitely looking at,” Kane said. “It seems like they kind of filled their void and went ahead and made a deal. So it is what it is.”
With the Rangers likely no longer a potential suitor, Kane must look elsewhere to determine where he might spend the remainder of this season. But his list of preferred suitors might prove considerably shorter than most Blackhawk fans expect.
“There’s a lot of good teams out there,” Kane said. “That’s where you sit down and have those discussions. I’m not going to think about it with you here right now. It’s something that’s going to happen behind closed doors and we’ll figure it out.
“Obviously you want to do right by the franchise, and the organization here has been amazing to me and given me so much. So you definitely want what’s best for both sides.”
Kane hasn’t performed up to his elite standards this season thus far, averaging less than a point per game (0.76) for the first time since 2017-18. As ESPN’s Emily Kaplan points out, though, the four-time All-Star may be playing through a hip injury.
If that’s the case, it would explain why the 5-foot-10 lefty only has nine goals and 35 points across 46 games while averaging 19:51 of ice time, his lowest total since 2014-15.
Still, a pair of tough decisions lie ahead for Chicago’s front office regarding Kane and Jonathan Toews – an impending UFA that also features a no-move clause – leading up to the March 3rd trade deadline.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: U.S. Embassy Canada. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.