Things continue to appear ugly in San Jose when it comes to the future of Evander Kane, his teammates and the organization. New reports suggest the team has ignored the cries of multiple players to remove Kane from their roster and now things have boiled over to the point many of the key players inside the organization are refusing to return to the team is Kane is back next season.
As crazy as it sounds like a roster member or two might give up potentially millions of dollars over the behavior of one man — these players are under contract, after all — if the report is true, it goes to show just how bad things have gotten when it comes to Sharks team chemistry and Kane as a potential locker room cancer.
Related: Numerous Sharks Teammates Want Evander Kane off Team [Report]
As per multiple reports, things in San Jose continue to go from bad to worse when it comes to Kane. Already accused of betting on Sharks games, reports suggest his teammates don’t want him back because he consistently ignores team rules, marches to the beat of his own drum and the team has set a precedent that they’re willing to treat him differently than other players, despite widespread knowledge among the organization and within the league that Kane is and has a problem.
The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz, notes that some ‘key players’ have apparently told the organization they don’t want to be a part of the Sharks if Evander Kane is going to be back. He writes: “Several key players informed team brass that if Kane was going to be a part of the Sharks going forward, they didn’t want to be. That’s how bad it got, and how complicated this situation has become” He adds, “The Sharks ignored everything,” said an NHL agent who represents at least one player on the team. “Team turned a blind eye.”
No wonder the rest of the team is upset.
There have been reported instances where Kane almost fought with an assistant coach over where he should be positioned on the power play, there is general frustration among the team that Kane gets away with whatever he wants, and that because every veteran who could keep him in check in the past — Joe Pavelski, Joel Ward, Paul Martin and Joe Thornton — are now gone, things are out of control. Another league source suggested that Kane is now starting to rub off on Timo Meier (one of Kane’s few friends) in a negative way, affecting his on-ice production.
The team is trying to trade him. That said, he’s also back on the ice in San Jose and everyone seems to be operating under the assumption he’ll be back. It’s not likely another club will pick him up in a deal as many franchises will want to stay as far away from the trouble as possible.
The really sad part here is that it almost feels like the team, his teammates and the NHL are past the point of wanting to help the player work through whatever demons might be plaguing him. Instead, it’s almost as if the Sharks are crossing their collective fingers the NHL takes care of this problem and Kane’s contract is terminated based on something found in the gambling investigation.
Next: What’s the Deal (or No Deal) with the Maple Leafs and Alex Galchenyuk?
