Canucks betting Evander Kane can still be a physical leader
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Evander Kane's time with the Edmonton Oilers is up. This much we know.
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The ex-Vancouver Giant announced on social media Wednesday morning that his time in the Alberta capital is coming to a close.
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Where he's headed next? Reportedly his hometown, as Kane reported himself. He is the newest Vancouver Canuck.
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'I'm incredibly excited for the next chapter of my career as I join the Canucks. It's an honour to become part of an organization and team I grew up watching as a kid. Vancouver is a city that lives and breathes hockey, I'm looking forward to the opportunity to play in front of my hometown as I did many years ago as a Vancouver Giant,' he wrote on social media after a long thank you to the city of Edmonton, the Oilers and the team's fans
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According to reports Canucks traded a mid-round draft pick for Kane, who turns 34 in August and carries a $5.1 million cap hit.
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Once regarded as a premier power forward talent, Kane was a pretty useful regular season forward for the Oilers, scoring 62 goals across parts of three seasons for the Oilers. But injuries slowed him repeatedly and he didn't even play in a regular season game in 2024-25, only playing in the playoffs for the Oilers in their run to the Stanley Cup Final.
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He was generally effective in a third-line role, but struggled to fill in for Zach Hyman once the winger left the lineup with a wrist injury.
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The Canucks are clearly making a bet that the physical game he brings is still there even if the skating isn't. And also that his hands are still there too.
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Of course, off-ice has been a whole other story. He struggled to connect with teammates in multiple cities before apparently finding a groove in Edmonton. He was traded from Winnipeg to Buffalo (for current Canuck Tyler Myers) a decade ago after this Jets teammates soured on him.
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San Jose terminated him from his contract after a series of off-ice incidents, including him faking COVID-19 vaccination documents. The NHL suspended him 21 games for that. He was also investigated by the league after his ex-wife accused him of betting on games as well as allegedly physically and sexually abusing her.
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After an investigation, the NHL eventually concluded that 'the allegations of domestic abuse made against Kane by his estranged wife could not be substantiated.'
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A judge later granted Kane sole custody of their daughter, allowing Anna supervised visits while she underwent psychiatric evaluation. (In 2024, Anna revealed she was among the women who had accused Sean 'Diddy' Combs of sexual assault.)
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After Kane was suspended by the NHL to start the 2021-22 season, he was assigned to the AHL. In the minors, he was again accused of again breaking COVID-19 protocols, but the NHL couldn't definitively confirm the allegations. Nonetheless, the Sharks moved to cut him.
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He signed on with the Oilers later that season and became a pretty handy player for them and by all accounts a good teammate too. He eventually won a grievance against the Sharks who were forced to pay out a huge settlement to him.
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