Whether fans like it or not, Evander Kane is going to be sporting a Vancouver Canuck sweater come October.
So it’s probably time to start looking into the type of player the Canucks are getting in Evander Kane?
By watching him closely during his time in Edmonton, we can somewhat paint the picture in our heads. He’s a 6’2″, 218-lb power forward with a wicked release matched with natural goal-scoring ability. With his large frame, he’s an elite net front presence who isn’t afraid of getting under the opponent’s skin.
But why not call in an Oilers expert, Cam Lewis of Oilers Nation, to tell us what Canucks fans are getting from Kane:
“After missing the entirety of the 2024-25 regular season, Evander Kane proved that he could still be a difference-maker when he returned to the Oilers in the playoffs this spring.“The big winger was very noticeable during Edmonton’s run through the Western Conference, scoring five goals and 11 points in 15 games against the Los Angeles Kings, Vegas Golden Knights, and Dallas Stars.“That wasn’t the case during the Stanley Cup Final. Kane scored a goal in Game 2 but was held off the scoresheet otherwise. He took 32 minutes in penalties throughout the series, and his physical edge didn’t have an impact against the Florida Panthers.“All in all, the Canucks are getting an inconsistent player with considerable upside. Kane can be a force on the ice, a power-forward who can come through in tight situations with big goals and who can tilt the direction of a game with his physical play. He can also disappear for long stretches at a time, especially when opponents don’t engage with him.”
Patrik Allvin met with the media earlier this afternoon following the trade and discussed what he’s expecting from Kane and how important it was that he wanted to come to Vancouver:
“I think every team is looking to be harder to play against. For us, with the group we have here, when a player like this comes available with the cost, we felt we have a chance to upgrade our top-nine, mid-six, and become a harder team to play against. Obviously, the way his contract was structured, he had a preferred 15 teams to go to, and Vancouver was his preferred destination.
“It means a lot to have an excited player coming here to Vancouver and provide the spark and juice we need.”
The spark and juice that Kane can bring to a lineup should not be overlooked.
What to expect out of Evander Kane
Kane plays his best hockey when he can get to his aggressive style of play. As Lewis said, when he’s engaging physically with his opponents, he makes his best offensive contributions.
Don’t expect Kane to drive play, but he’s not afraid to drive the net and play along the boards to retrieve the puck for his linemates. You can expect multiple trips to the penalty box, but that comes with his ability to stand up for his teammates on the ice. The Canucks lacked that intimidation factor in their lineup last season after losing Nikita Zadorov.
Sure, Kiefer Sherwood and Dakota Joshua have the same physicality level as Kane, but there really wasn’t a true antagonist on the roster.
Diving into some of his stats, he does carry an offensive punch. He’s scored 20 goals in eight of his last nine seasons, eclipsing over 30 goals twice. And that scoring touch has stuck with Kane throughout his career, maintaining a 20-goal pace in all but one of his 14 seasons in the NHL.
However, at this point in his career, Kane would need to play with some high-level talent to be able to produce in the goal-scoring department. Does that mean he plays alongside Elias Pettersson, who has proven he can elevate his linemates in the past? Or perhaps Filip Chytil, who’s confident with the puck and can drive play, allowing Kane to set up shop at the netfront?
That is the area where Kane finds most of his success. Looking back at his 2023-2024 regular season NHL Edge data, you can see Kane got most of his goals from the high-danger area in front of the net. Of his 220 shots that season, 78 came from that area, which works out to be 35.5% of his shots on goal.
But when you look at his scoring rate, he scored 13 of his 24 from the high-danger area, amounting to 54.2% of his production.
While he might not be the distance sniper he once was at the beginning of his career, Kane has still maintained a 20-goal pace in all but one of his 14 seasons in the NHL. He has also eclipsed the 20-goal milestone in eight of his last nine seasons.
Sticking on NHL Edge, Kane’s top skating speed in that season was 22.56 MPH, ranking in the 70th percentile. He’s by no means a burner, but it was positive seeing him rank in the top half of the league. However, when you look at this past postseason run, Kane’s top speed was down to 21.86 MPH, ranking in the 59th percentile. To be fair, he was returning from multiple abdominal surgeries and hadn’t played hockey in nearly a year. But Kane will be 34 when he makes his Canucks debut; players don’t typically gain speed into their mid-30s.
There are certainly some positives that Kane will bring to this Canucks squad, but a lot of the angst among fans are about his off-ice antics. Throughout his career, there were multiple stories regarding some non-hockey-related issues, which led to him bouncing around the league with a few teams.
Even before he landed in Edmonton, Oilers fans had the same worry about the character issues coming in. However, Oilers reporter Bob Stauffer joined Donnie & Dhali on Wednesday morning to give Canucks fans some insight on not only Kane the player, but the person he saw in Edmonton.
“Evander Kane has an identity. He brings it on the ice. He was heavily invested in the community off the ice, which I don’t think everybody realizes out there. And for the naysayers of this transaction, all I would say is there were naysayers when Evander came to Edmonton, and within about two months, everybody loved him. So I frankly think he’s exactly what the Canucks need. And if we didn’t have a salary cap, I don’t think the Oilers would have traded him.
“He’s a really smart guy, and he also knows how to sell himself. He did a ton of stuff off the ice, a lot of charity stuff. He was vested in the indigenous community in Northern Alberta. He’d spent a lot of time helping out disadvantaged children. In terms of in the dressing room, it’s a family we’re around it a little. You know, to be frank with you, I didn’t hear a lot of bitching about Evander Kane from any of the other players. What I did hear is that there was appreciation that he could do things that were kind of a Lost Art in today’s facets of the game and how it’s played in terms of the gamesmanship.
“I could easily see him contributing and being a very effective player. I get why the Vancouver Canucks took the bet on him. I do. It makes a lot of sense for them.”
All in all, the Canucks are getting a perennial 20 goal scorer, who brings some snarl and grit to the lineup; someone who isn’t afraid to stand up for teammates and get under the skin of his opponent. There is always going to be some negativity surrounding his past, but at the end of the day, Vancouver’s added a player who is going to make their on-ice production better, and did not have to pay a premium price to do so.
What do you think, Canucks fans? What are you expecting to see out of the newest Canuck, Evander Kane? Let us know in the comments below!
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