Buffalo Sabres: 3 more reasons Patrick Kane is not a good fit
Let’s face it. As long as Patrick Kane plays for a rebuilding team, pundits will always try to link him to the Buffalo Sabres. Even if he is a bad fit.
The Patrick Kane to the Buffalo Sabres storyline is now heading into its third month. If you remember correctly, I wrote my first article about this debacle back in June. It is now August 4th, and with each passing month, high-authority outlets continue to write up whether or not the Sabres acquiring Kane makes sense.
Let me be clear: Acquiring Patrick Kane makes zero sense for the Sabres. For one, he is playing in a contract year, in which he will cost the Chicago Blackhawks $6.9 million in 2022-23, with an overall cap hit of $10.5 million. That second number is important, because Kane’s reps may still seek something near the $10.5 million mark, or slightly below it. But more on that later.
So acquiring Kane would totally contradict what general manager Kevyn Adams and company are looking to do, which is, and it is something I’ve said in dozens of articles, to build a nucleus of talented, young players, and sign them to long-term deals.
Kane is a talented player who put up 92 points last season. And it is one reason why Kane’s supporters in the Sabres faithful want him. But the guy will be 34 years old and heading into his 16th NHL season.
And a deeper look into Kane’s stats, such as his 9.1 shooting percentage, 49 giveaways (second-highest of his career), and 42 takeaways (sixth-lowest of his career), indicate that he may be a player in decline.
3 reasons Patrick Kane is not a good fit for the Sabres neither in 2022 nor beyond: Reason #1 – Asking price is way too high
To acquire Kane, the Buffalo Sabres would be giving up multiple first round picks. And since they have not seen the playoffs in over a decade, they are in no position to part ways with anything that will deflate their prospect pool just yet. The Blackhawks would also demand a high-end prospect, which the Sabres are also not about to part ways with.
You can also expect more, lower draft picks and prospects to be involved in this one, and perhaps a forward like Casey Mittelstadt. Again, this trade makes no sense whatsoever for the Sabres because not only is the asking price too high; it would also require them to give up too many young assets for a 34-year-old forward heading into his 16th season.
Kane may have scored his points, but as the numbers in the previous section indicated, he is already leaning into a decline. If the Sabres were Stanley Cup or even playoff contenders, such a trade would make sense. But they won’t contend for a Cup for at least another two seasons, at which point Kane would be 36 and heading into his 18th year.
Salary could be too high
We know a few things about Kane’s contact: His cap hit sits at $10.5 million and he could seek something similar as he signs what might be the final contract of his career. Either way, Kane won’t come cheap, even at a hometown discount, with an AAV of $6.5 million as the possible floor per The Hockey Writers.
There are a plethora of players in the Buffalo Sabres budding nucleus Adams wants to re-sign considering they play well this season. I have mentioned their names before, but the likes of Tage Thompson, Rasmus Dahlin, Dylan Cozens, Rasmus Asplund, and Peyton Krebs will all see their contracts expire over the next two years.
Each of the above players are trending in the right direction. Thompson evolved into a dynamic scorer while Dahlin clinched an All-Star berth. Cozens has the work ethic and leadership ability to be part of the middle six for years to come while Asplund proved he can be an annual contender for the Selke. Krebs will play in his first full season at the NHL level and he showed flashes of brilliance.
All of the above are also nowhere near finished growing as players and are just now hitting their primes. Meanwhile, Kane is teetering toward the back-nine. Both acquiring and signing him to a long-term deal will most likely force the Sabres to break up that nucleus.
Kane may be declining as a player
I have heard some express their belief that Kane will help the Sabres make the playoffs from both fans and media pundits. But Kane hasn’t been to the playoffs in four of the last five seasons. His lone appearance? The 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, when COVID-19 forced the NHL to adopt a contingency plan in which it became almost anyone’s chance to win the Cup.
As noted, Kane’s numbers are already declining, despite his 92-point outing. One of the arguments you often see pro-Kane supporters make is that he scored 24 points than the highest-scoring member of the Buffalo Sabres last season, Tage Thompson.
But I digress. While Kane indeed scored more often, his 9.1 shooting percentage is alarming. Let’s look at some of the Sabres top scorers from just a season ago:
- Tage Thompson: 15.0%
- Jeff Skinner: 12.6%
- Victor Olofsson: 12.2%
- Kyle Okposo: 12.1%
It isn’t until you get to Alex Tuch, 8.6%, do you find a top-scoring forward on the Sabres with a lower shooting percentage. Further, Thompson and Skinner accumulated more goals, 38 and 33, respectively, than Kane, who logged 26.
Hot. Grading the Sabres 2022 offseason. light
To be fair, Kane did tie his career-high in assists with 66, something no one on the Sabres came close to reaching, with Rasmus Dahlin leading the team with 40. This tells me that he can definitely still play. But looking at his overall statistics, it is clear that Kane is not the player he once was and would need to pair with dynamic scorers to be a worthwhile member of the Sabres.
Article Source: Sabres Could Use Kane but the Cost Could Be Too High by Keiran Bray