DailyFaceoff’s Frank Seravalli made an appearance on Oilersnation Everyday Friday affternoon where he reported that it is unlikely that the Oilers trade Evander Kane.
When asked by host Tyler Yaremchuk about moves that Edmonton is likely to do and unlikely but still plausible which Kane was brought up in the latter category, Seravalli threw cold water on the idea that Kane could be traded this summer.
“I don’t really see an Evander Kane trade. You’re dealing with a distressed asset right now,” he said “Yes, he’s got an ability to be a game breaker, but he’s also been really banged up the last two playoff runs when the Oilers needed him most. It was his hand against Vegas and core muscle injury that he needs surgery on in the Stanley Cup Final that caused him to miss the most important periods of time of the season.”
“I’d say it’s more likely than not that Kane is back, particularly given the surgery.”
It is the latest development in this saga that has seen its fair share of ups and downs, from his healthy scratch that Kane did not agree with to him getting yelled at on the bench by his teammates numerous times. These were all done in an attempt to get him rolling because the players in the locker room know just how important a healthy and motivated Kane can be to their success, but there were also rumblings of frustration felt by the same group which led to questions about his future with the organization.
For what it’s worth, Kane did not seem deterred by all the noise surrounding his roller-coaster season and even took the time to pump up his team on the Pat McAfee Show earlier in the playoffs. All of which is to say that despite all the turbulence that he experienced on and off the ice, it is understandable why the Oilers are not ready to give up on him just yet.
Even if they wanted to trade him away, it won’t be an easy move to pull off because of his injury history of late combined with his cap hit of $5.125 million AAV for the next two seasons. Given that he will turn 33 over the summer and that his playstyle can be described as a power forward, the wear and tear is going to pay its toll at some point and that will have an impact on his ability to impact that game like when he was younger. It is in both parties’ best interest to ride out the length of the contract and attempt to get as much out of Kane before he starts to see a steep decline in effectiveness.
Kane is coming off a down year offensively where he recorded 44 points (24 goals and 20 assists) in 77 games played. He would go on to play 20 playoff games where he mustered up eight points (four goals and four assists). The reason for this drop in production is that he was dealing with a sports hernia throughout the entire season as Kris Knoblauch revealed at the lockerroom cleanout.
