Patrick Kane Has Answered A Lot Of Doubters (Me Included!)

What his recent hot streak's timing ahead of the trade deadline means.

Remember long ago, when there were doubts about whether Patrick Kane was still the Hall of Fame-caliber player we’re all used to seeing?

Yeah, me neither…

In all seriousness, ever since I wrote last week that Kane was having the worst season of his career — and that he needed to answer questions about whether he was in decline, injured or merely unmotivated — all Kane has done is produce 7 goals, 10 points and three multi-goal games in four appearances. Talk about motivation!

That’s by far the best four-game scoring stretch of the season for Kane. In fact, before this he hadn’t produced so much as 7 points in a four-game stretch since October 29. While his 7.0 adjusted GAR on the season is still on the low side both by Kane’s standards and among the other similar players whose age-34 seasons we looked at, now he’s more in Marcel Dionne’s range than Bryan Trottier’s. (Which is kind of a shame, because the parallels between Kane and Trottier lined up kind of perfectly.)

Being able to add a sniper of vintage Kane quality rather than a journeyman role player changes the trade market ahead of next Friday’s deadline. Already, teams who were once thought out of the Kane bidding are back in, and there could be more to come based on how Kane has been playing of late.

But one paradox of Kane’s dramatically increased production is that his new team will no longer be buying low on the future HOFer.

While Kane’s hot-streak timing right before the deadline proved to would-be suitors that he is healthy and capable of producing at a high level again, it also raises his price tag. And that, in turn, will leave his new team — whomever it may be — more depleted ahead of the Stanley Cup playoffs than it might have otherwise been. (Granted, the rebuilding Blackhawks are probably not seeking pieces in return that would make much of a difference for 2023 anyway, but every little bit of roster talent matters.)

So did Kane accidentally do himself a disservice by amping up his play right before the deadline? For his part, Kane dismissed the idea that the deadline showcase was a factor in his improved performance.

"No, I don't know," Kane said. "It's just, I think all of a sudden you get going and you start feeling good, you start feeling confident. I was the beneficiary of a few plays tonight and even the last couple games too. I think things are just clicking."

Intentional timing or not, though, Kane’s heater is giving the trade market a last-minute shakeup it needs.