The trade rumors are blowing — hard — and the time is coming for a decision to come from Patrick Kane on his future with the Blackhawks. At least for the rest of this season. So, when I saw a thread on Twitter that put his achievements in some perspective, I thought it might be a good time to appreciate what he’s meant to the Blackhawks.
Since Kane entered the league at the start of the 2007-08 season, the only players in the NHL who have more points than Kane (1,215) are Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. Crosby is the only player with more assists than Kane’s 776 as well. And the only three players with more goals than Kane’s 439 are Ovechkin, Steven Stamkos and Crosby.
Paul Pidutti has been putting together player cards on Twitter that contextualize players’ numbers. And his evaluation of Kane’s career confirms that he’s not only a future Hall of Famer, but already the greatest American-born player in NHL history.