By acquiring Patrick Kane in a deal with the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday, the New York Rangers cemented their status as a Stanley Cup contender in the crowded Eastern Conference and brought the star winger back together with Artemi Panarin.
After purchasing Vladimir Tarasenko from St. Louis on February 9, it was thought that New York was no longer in the running to sign Kane. When questioned about leaving his own NHL home, the 34-year-old Kane was likewise evasive.
During the start of Panarin’s NHL career, Kane enjoyed playing with the Russian winger for two seasons, and because to a no-movement clause in his contract, the three-time Stanley Cup champion was in charge of his own destiny.
“This has been a difficult moment for my family and I, Nonetheless, I believe that this choice puts me in the best position to win another Stanley Cup right away,” Kane stated in a release. The Blackhawks did everything they could to place me in a terrific situation, and I will always be appreciative. This is not about me leaving the Blackhawks, but rather this is a chance for me.
Following days of speculation and salary cap wrangling, the Rangers traded Kane and minor league defenseman Cooper Zech to the struggling Blackhawks for a conditional 2023 second-round selection, a 2025 fourth-round pick, and minor league defenseman Andy Welinski. Vili Saarijarvi, a Finnish defenseman, was also acquired by Chicago from Arizona as part of the deal.
In exchange for maintaining 25% of Kane’s contract, the Rangers gave the Coyotes a third-round pick in 2025, while the Blackhawks kept the remaining 50%.
If the Rangers win this year’s East, Chicago’s conditional second-round pick from New York becomes a first-round pick in 2024. The Blackhawks will have eight picks in the first three rounds of the 2018 draught if it stays a second-round pick.
Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson remarked, “I knew from the day I took this job that there would be some tough days and today was one of the toughest.”
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Kane might make his Rangers debut either on Wednesday night against Philadelphia or on Thursday against Ottawa at home. He ended Chicago’s 49-year title drought in Philly by scoring the biggest goal of his NHL career there, an overtime winner in Game 6 of the 2010 Stanley Cup Final.
When he departed the Blackhawks during their road trip in the midst of the trade negotiations, he was in the middle of his best stretch of the season. He has a four-game point run with seven goals and three assists.
Patrick, in my opinion, realised it was a fantastic fit for him and that it is a fantastic fit for us,” said Chris Drury, the New York GM. “We’re very thrilled that he wanted to be moved, and that it was to the New York Rangers,” the statement continued.
In the deal with St. Louis, Tarasenko and backup defenseman Niko Mikkola were acquired by New York. At the time the deal was done, the Rangers were leery of waiting for Kane to decide on his future since they believed Tarasenko would cost less to acquire than Timo Meier.
However, Drury only had to send St. Louis one first-round pick, one fourth-round pick, and two players. The Rangers possessed sufficient draught capital after exchanging one first-round pick for promising defenseman Nils Lundkvist from Dallas last summer, allowing them to acquire Kane from Chicago.
The Blackhawks made Kane their first-round pick in the 2007 draught. He is in the final year of an eight-year, $84 million contract extension. It had its conclusion in July 2014.
By helping Chicago win the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013, and 2015, Kane contributed to the best run in the team’s history. In 2014, the Blackhawks reached the Western Conference final but fell to the Los Angeles Kings in a thrilling seven-game series.
Yet recently, the franchise has struggled. As one of the poorest NHL clubs this season, it has a chance to get the first overall pick in the draught and select Connor Bedard.
Blackhawks CEO Danny Wirtz remarked, “The contributions Patrick Kane has made to the Blackhawks organisation and city of Chicago will never be forgotten. Even if the team’s history is coming to an end today, he will always be a member of the Blackhawks family.
One of the league’s most talented wingers for a while now has been Kane. In 54 games, he has tallied 16 goals and 29 assists, but the talent gap around him has hampered his stats.
Kane has a lengthy record of playoff achievement Along with scoring the series-winning goal against the Flyers in 2010, he also took home the Conn Smythe Award for playoff MVP in 2013.
He has at least 21 goals in at least 14 seasons and at least 40 assists in at least 13 seasons. After posting a career-high 46 goals and 60 assists in 82 games, he was named the NHL MVP in 2016 and received the Hart Award.
Kane set a career high with 66 assists in 78 games just previous season, when Chicago had Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome.
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