Evander Kane: The NHL’s Biggest Troublemaker

On Ice Activities

Kane is not necessarily known as a dirty player only be suspended three times throughout his career. His first suspension came on April 26th, 2018 when he delivered an illegal cross-check to Vegas Golden Knights forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare during the Western Conference semi-finals. Kane would receive a one-game suspension for this incident.

The 30-year-old"s second suspension would come during the 2019-2020 preseason. He would be suspended for the first three games of the regular season for abuse of an official.

His third suspension would come during the 2019-2020 season. In a game against his former team, the Winnipeg Jets Kane would deliver a dangerous hit to the head on Jets defenseman Neal Pionk, thus resulting in another three-game suspension and causing Kane to go on an internet tirade against the NHL"s department of player safety.

Evander Kane has led the NHL in penalty twice in his career, first in 2018-2019 with 153 penalty minutes in 75 games, then in 2019-2020 with 122 penalty minutes in 64 games, for a total of 275 penalty minutes through back to back seasons. He has also dropped his gloves 21 times over his 12-year career. His on-ice antics don"t make him a troublemaker but they play a role.

Off Ice Issues

Kane is no stranger to off-ice issues. From court cases to NHL investigations. Kane"s off-ice issues have caused headaches for the NHL.

On April 3, 2014, Kane was accused of assault in his hometown of Vancouver, he was also sued for financial damages due to this incident. Kane openly said he feels this is the reason the Thrashers traded Kane to the Jets in 2015.

Another legal case occurred on July 1, 2016, when Kane was sued by a 21-year-old woman who accused him of assault. Court documents claimed that the woman alleged that Kane attacked her, resulting in cuts, bleeding, and multiple surgeries.

On August 1, 2016, Kane appeared in court for one count of criminal trespassing and four counts of non-criminal harassment stemming from an incident at a Buffalo bar in June of 2016. Two separate police reports were filed at the same time claiming Kane had grabbed a woman by the throat and tried to force her out of the club and into a car, as well as forcibly grabbing a woman by her arm and trying to force her out of the same bar.

Kane managed to stay out of legal trouble until November 4, 2019, when he was sued by the Cosmopolitan casino in Las Vegas. Kane had allegedly been given $500,00 gambling markers which he did not repay, before leaving. Kane would lose the lawsuit and be ordered to pay back the debt plus cover legal fees.

On January 11, 2021, Kane would file for Chapter seven bankruptcy in the state of California after accumulating $26.8 million of debt.

In July of 2021 Kane"s estranged wife Anna publically blasted him on social media saying Evanader bet on hockey games involving his own team and threw games in accordance with bookies to make money. These allegations forced the NHL to launch an investigation. During the investigation, Kane stood firm he had never been involved in hockey-related betting, but he did in fact have a gambling addiction that he was working through. On September 22, 2021, the NHL stated they had found no evidence of the claims made against Evander Kane.

The NHL completed its gambling investigation of Evander Kane and says it has found no evidence that the San Jose Sharks forward bet on his own games. https://t.co/zjhpINj6q0

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 22, 2021

After the gambling allegations, Kane"s wife brought forth domestic violence allegations again Evander Kane. This is currently being investigated by the police and the NHL. These allegations have forced Kane to get a restraining order against his soon-to-be ex-wife.

On Tuesday, September 28th, 2021 the NHL announced they will once again be investigating Kane. This time it is for violating covid-19 protocols. The NHL is taking their covid protocols seriously right now, therefore be on the lookout for Kane to get hit with a fine or potentially a suspension.

The NHL is investigating Evander Kane for a possible violation of league COVID protocols, sources tell @FriedgeHNIC, though details regarding the nature of the possible violation are unknown at this time.https://t.co/nLeR8VAq2r

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) September 28, 2021

Troubled or Misunderstood?

Kane"s issues didn"t come to light until 2016, on and off the ice. Throughout his career and legal issues, Kane has still managed to be an impact NHL player, even with the labels “Immature", “Selfish", and “Cocky". Kane is in fact one of the NHL"s biggest troublemakers.

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