Top UFA target goes under the knife and will miss significant time to start the 2023-24 season
Patrick Kane just had his worst offensive output in a regular season over his 16 year career. He tallied 57 points in 73 games for the Chicago Blackhawks and the New York Rangers, which is an average of 0.78 points per game. His previous low was during his sophomore season when he registered 70 points in 80 games for a 0.875 points per game average.
He finished the season with the Rangers after being one of the top trade deadline targets. He scored 12 points in 19 regular season games and added another 6 points in 7 playoff games as the Rangers were defeated by the New Jersey Devils in the first round.
The soon-to-be hall-of-famer didn't look like his usual self and part of that could've been because the Chicago Blackhawks tore down the fabric of their foundation and left Kane with little to no help in his 54 games pre-trade. However as Elliotte Friedman pointed out earlier today, Kane had a hip resurfacing under Dr. Edwin Su and his recovery time is anywhere between 4-6 months.
His agent, Pat Brisson, says Kane wants to play for a long time and that his doctors are very optimistic that that can come to fruition after he has fully recovered. Kane is set to become an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career with his 10-year contract expiring this summer.
Looking ahead at the free agent class of 2023, Kane will remain one of the top names available even with the injury. Alex Killorn, Ryan O'Reilly, Max Domi, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Patrice Bergeron - although if he does return it will be with Boston - head the UFA class. There's a chance that Kane signs a cheaper short-term deal coming off the procedure and could very well be a target for a lot of contending teams.
At one point in time, the Toronto Maple Leafs were rumoured to have been interested in Kane's services ahead of the deadline but the player made it very obvious that he only wanted the Rangers. Now as a free agent, he'll have all the time in the world to make the best decision for his career as he looks to add to his 451 goals 1,237 points.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 1 | 371 ANSWERS Top UFA target goes under the knife and will miss significant time to start the 2023-24 season Should the Leafs target Patrick Kane as a UFA signing this summer? | ||
| Yes | 60 | 16.2 % |
| No | 311 | 83.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
