Top 4 Trade Destinations For Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane

With the Chicago Blackhawks stripping it all down and entering a full rebuild, it feels as though it is a matter of when, not if, they will trade Patrick Kane. Many expected that trade to come to fruition this offseason, but training camp has now arrived and nothing yet has taken place. That said, a deal at some point during this season ahead of the deadline is all but a guarantee, as the 33-year-old is set to become an unrestricted free agent in less than a year’s time.

Patrick Kane: “Everyone has a positive outlook on the year and we want to prove a lot of people wrong.”

“I have a year left on my contract and I’m here haven’t been a lot of discussions about [trades].” pic.twitter.com/EsE49OKsgp

— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) September 22, 2022

Despite what his age may suggest, Kane still appears to be very much in his prime and his still one of the leagues most dominant players. This past season, he put up an extremely impressive 26 goals and 92 points on what was a very bad Blackhawks team. Assuming he goes to a contender, he should be able to produce at an even better rate. With that said, here are four teams that could be good fits for the American winger.

New York Rangers

While Kane has had several notable linemates over the years, perhaps the most memorable is Artemi Panarin. The two formed arguably the leagues most dominant duo between 2015-2017, and were extremely close off the ice as well. It was no secret that Kane was very frustrated at the fact the Blackhawks chose to trade him during the 2017 offseason.

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Fast forward to where we are now, and Panarin is on one of the leagues most exciting up and coming teams in the New York Rangers. The Rangers are in a great position to compete for a Stanley Cup, possessing arguably the best goaltender in the world in Igor Shesterkin while also having plenty of other weapons in Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, and of course defenseman Adam Fox.

Given that Kane has a massive $10.5 million cap hit, the Blackhawks will likely be forced to retain 50 per cent of it in any deal. That in itself still wouldn’t be enough for the Rangers to fit in Kane, meaning general manager Chris Drury would need to get creative. That said, the Rangers have a ton of high picks in the next few drafts, and also have several great young prospects. Because of that, they are one of the best matches of any team in the league when it comes to acquiring Kane.

Buffalo Sabres

The Buffalo Sabres aren’t going to be a playoff team in 2022-23, meaning acquiring Kane with just one year remaining on his deal wouldn’t make much sense. However, if they were able to have discussions before a deal is made and work out an extension, they could prove to be a great fit given that the city of Buffalo happens to be Kane’s hometown.

Given the hometown connection, the Sabres have been one of the more discussed teams when it comes to acquiring Kane. You may think he would have no interest in playing for a team that has struggled so much over the last several years, but with some of the recent changes this organization has made, they may not be as far away from competing as some think.

Young talents such as Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Peyton Krebs, and Casey Mittelstadt on the front end, along with Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power on the back, have this team much closer to being a playoff-caliber roster than many realize. Adding Kane, who still has plenty left in him, would only add to what is suddenly a promising group.

Colorado Avalanche

After winning the Stanley Cup this past season, the Colorado Avalanche were forced to part ways with several key members of their offense in Nazem Kadri and Andrei Burakovsky. By all accounts, they are expected to contend once again in 2022-23, though they are not as deep of a team as they were at this time last year.

That loss of offense is exactly why some believe they will be in on Kane throughout the upcoming season if they haven’t been already. He would not only come in and instantly become one of the group’s most lethal players in terms of offensive skill but would also add even more winning experience to a group that now has plenty.

When it comes to acquiring Kane, like with any team, it won’t be easy. The Avalanche do have some intriguing young pieces on their current roster that the Blackhawks would undoubtedly be looking to receive in return, along with a few draft picks. In order to work things out from a salary perspective, one would imagine that Erik Johnson, who is in the final year of a deal paying him $6 million, would be heading the other way.

Edmonton Oilers

Another team that was brought up plenty this summer when the talk surrounding Kane really heated up was the Edmonton Oilers. It is unclear exactly how much truth there was behind this speculation, though it would give Jay Woodcroft’s squad yet another serious threat up front, and boy, would it be fun to watch.

As far as a top-six forward group goes, there are few, if any teams, who are as deep as the Oilers. With players up front like Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evander Kane, Zach Hyman, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, they proved plenty last season they can beat teams on talent alone. Adding Kane to that group would make them downright scary, and arguably the most feared team by opposing defensemen in the entire league.

The main issue with the Oilers acquiring Kane is that they have very little cap space at the moment. If such a deal were to come about, general manager Ken Holland would need to get very creative, something he hasn’t been known for during his time in Edmonton. That said, you can bet his best player in McDavid would be pushing for a move like this to come to fruition, which may in itself be enough to force Holland to find a way to get it done.

Next: Oilers Sign Ryan McLeod, What’s Next as Trade Rumors Linger