Free-Agent Patrick Kane Signing New Contract With 1 Of 2 Teams
Patrick Kane's decision is coming soon.
“It’s a tough decision for him. It really is. Whether to go home, make it easy on his parents, his family, and his friends, and finish like (Jonathan Toews tried to do with the Winnipeg Jets). Or, he comes back, and in my opinion, he’s a Blackhawk. The Blackhawks, you see how tough it is to make the playoffs, it’s hit or miss, there’s no guarantees. With the absence of Connor (Bedard) in the beginning of the season, there’s no telling when he’s going to be back yet. How great would that be? You saw the reception he got a couple of years ago during the jersey retirement. He’s so beloved in Chicago. So I’m hoping he leans that way. I think he’s going to make his decision pretty quick now. It’s time. But it’s a tough decision, for sure."
“I just go back to what I was feeling when I asked to be traded from my hometown. It was one of the toughest things I ever did, but it worked out. But God, I’m hoping he becomes a Blackhawk. It would be exciting. It would be a good boost to the Blackhawks. He’s got some good gas left in him. I think he’s got two, three years left in him. He had a good finish in Detroit. So let’s keep our fingers crossed. That would be great news if he signed with the Hawks.”
According to hall-of-fame defenceman Chris Chelios, Kane is very close to signing on the dotted line, and there's only two teams currently in the running for his services, the Chicago Blackhawks and Buffalo Sabres.
Chelios spoke on a local Chicago radio station and opened up about everything he knew. “I am not going to lie to you guys. It is down to Chicago and Buffalo. I know that because I’ve spoken to him,” Chelios said.
“It’s a tough decision for him. It really is. Whether to go home, make it easy on his parents, his family, and his friends, and finish like (Jonathan Toews tried to do with the Winnipeg Jets). Or, he comes back, and in my opinion, he’s a Blackhawk. The Blackhawks, you see how tough it is to make the playoffs, it’s hit or miss, there’s no guarantees. With the absence of Connor (Bedard) in the beginning of the season, there’s no telling when he’s going to be back yet. How great would that be? You saw the reception he got a couple of years ago during the jersey retirement. He’s so beloved in Chicago. So I’m hoping he leans that way. I think he’s going to make his decision pretty quick now. It’s time. But it’s a tough decision, for sure."
Kane loved his time in Chicago and it would be a nice storybook ending to his career if he spent the last few seasons of his NHL career as a Blackhawk. As for Buffalo, they lost Alex Tuch and are hoping Kane can step in a play first-line, right-wing minutes.