To end this past season, Patrick Kane did let the Chicago Blackhawks know he’d been playing through a nagging injury that had been bothering him prior to the Blackhawks’ play-in appearance against the Edmonton Oilers in the bubble. That injury has never gone away, even though Kane has been playing through it as best as possible.
As per NBC Sports Chicago’s Charlie Roumeliotis, reports out of Chicago are that Kane still isn’t fully recovered from that injury. Like he’s done in the past, his plan is to play through it, and Kane is “optimistic with where [he’s] going,” but the mystery and uncertainty surrounding that injury is something he and the team are going to keep a close eye on this season.
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Kane said, “Without getting into too much detail, it’s something that happens as you play hockey and I’ve been playing hockey since I’ve been six, seven years old. It’s just something that comes up.” He added, “Throughout the summer you have your worries and whatnot. It’s something that’s not completely healed, but I’m optimistic with where I’m going and happy after today’s skate with how I felt after that hard a skate.”
GM Stan Bowman acknowledged he is aware of the issues nagging his star winger and called it just one of those things that hockey players go through. He believes that Kane may elect to eventually get surgery, but the questions will be whether or not he does so after his NHL career is over. Bowman noted that a lot of players try to gauge how severe the injury is and avoid surgery if possible since no one ever really knows how going under the knife will affect their career moving forward. Bowman said, “Certainly that’s unavoidable at times where you need a surgery, but that’s not the case with Patrick.” The GM added, no one is concerned about it.
Both the player and the team might be saying it’s no big deal, and perhaps that’s true. At the same time, it will be worth monitoring how Kane feels as the season goes along.
Good News For Blackhawks Fans
On a brighter note, news coming out of Blackhawks’ camp is that Jonathan Toews rejoined the team for on-ice skates and looks pretty good. Toews and the organization aren’t guaranteeing an opening night appearance when the Blackhawks play Colorado on Wednesday, October 13, but both sides are optimistic he could play and if not then, quickly thereafter.
Next: Maple Leafs’ Early Lines: Bunting with Tavares, Ritchie with Matthews
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