Potential Patrick Kane Trade Destinations

The Scorer

An elite, scoring, play-driving winger, he would be a potent offensive threat for a team looking to pack more of a punch for a playoff run. Although Kane may be having his worst season in years, it could very well be a case of being stuck on a bad team, usually at the bottom of the NHL Power Rankings. His most common linemates are Andreas Athanasiou and Max Domi, for reference.

Assuming it is just a case of bad team equals bad year, Kane is a player who can easily put up over a point per game, with an average of 1.23 points per game over the last four seasons. And other than this season, he is typically a possession monster. Only once in his 15 completed seasons has he had a Corsi for percentage below 55%. This season, that number is just shy of 50%, but again, more evidence for the bad team influencing personal stats.

The trickiest part for a team looking to acquire Kane is the cap hit. His AAV is $10.5 million, with a prorated cap hit of approximately $2.4 million at the trade deadline. It may not seem like a lot, but there are a lot of teams pushing or above the cap that would still struggle to find a way to create that space. Luckily, his contract is up at the end of this season so they do not need to find over $10 million in the coming years to take on a player of this calibre.

That being said, here are a few teams that should or could make a trade for Kane, if he were to agree to waive his no-movement clause.

New York Rangers

The Rangers are one of, if not the, top teams expressing interest in acquiring Kane. There are quite a few holes in the forward depth that he would help to fill, namely reuniting with Artemi Panarin on the top line in New York.

Looking at the assets the Rangers have available right now, they could put together an enticing package for Kane. One of their underperforming top prospects, Alexis Lafreniere or more likely Kaapo Kakko due to cap hit, could be the centrepiece. The Rangers have their first-round picks in upcoming years, including an extra one in the 2023 draft, they should be willing to part with. That could be a starting point for this trade.

And, possibly another draft pick to get Chicago to retain the approximately 30% of Kane’s remaining salary to make the trade work.

After nabbing Vladimir Tarasenko, the Rangers are likely out on Kane.

Edmonton Oilers

Another player on the trade bait board, another trade rumour article including the Edmonton Oilers. They are rumoured to be interested in nearly everyone this season. This is the time for win-now mode in Edmonton as they have a very winnable path through the Pacific Division and Western Conference in the projected playoff matchups. Anything short of matching last season’s Western Conference Finals appearance will be a disappointment.

The Oilers currently run with 11 forwards and seven defenders on game days, so a Patrick Kane trade would just swap them back to a standard lineup composition. He would immediately be slotted in with Connor McDavid, though it would be interesting to see how well that dynamic would work given both players are best with the puck.

It will be incredibly tricky for the Oilers to fit Kane in their cap situation, even as a rental. But if they build a package with some players likely to be traded, such as Tyson Barrie, one of Jesse Puljujarvi or Kailer Yamamoto, and a couple of draft picks or prospects it might be a starting point Chicago would listen to.

Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche have struggled a bit in their Stanley Cup defense season. They have been hit hard by injuries, including a key one to Nathan MacKinnon that seemed to be a major factor in their struggling offense.

After losing Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky in the last offseason, there are definite openings for an elite calibre forward to slot into Colorado’s lineup. Potentially, a top line of Mikko Rantanen – MacKinnon – Kane. That would be something special to watch.

The Avalanche might have a harder time putting together a worthy enough package, and may end up having to part with someone like Alex Newhook with a couple of draft picks and a veteran player to make the cap situation work.

Long Shot: Buffalo Sabres

It’s always worth mentioning the hometown team. Kane is from Buffalo, making the Sabres an easy pick for a destination as he nears the final few years of his career. The question is, would Buffalo find it worthwhile to trade for him this season instead of just try to sign him in the offseason as a free agent?

If the Sabres are still in the playoff hunt come the trade deadline, they could be a sneaky pick to land Kane. They are only three points back of a playoff spot right now and have been slowly closing that gap each week. Already owners of one of the top offenses in the league, the Sabres could become a powerhouse after a Patrick Kane trade.

Buffalo has all the cap space in the world to add Kane this season, and a plethora of prospects to entice Chicago to accept a trade.

Those are four teams that could be interested in a Patrick Kane trade this deadline season. Which team do you think would make this trade? Drop a comment down below!

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