Hockey is a long season. Some ups and downs and emotions go along with it. The players go through it, and even the fan base rides the waves that are coming in. For the New York Rangers, there was a tidal wave of emotions and ups and downs. One specific sequence of events that factored in was the trade deadline. Chris Drury made one splash after another. One of those players was Patrick Kane. Revisiting the Patrick Kane trade seems to show why this was not the wisest of all decisions.
Revisiting The Patrick Kane Trade
When you are contending for the Stanley Cup, there is reason to go all in. While that approach does not always work out (see this season’s Boston Bruins), making moves to bolster the club is not a bad idea. This trade deadline, Drury acquired Kane, Vladimir Tarasenko, Tyler Motte, and Niko Mikkola. The moves gave the team the necessary depth it needed. But in the end, it would prove not to be as impactful as last year’s deadline. As we revisit the Patrick Kane trade, it ended up being a mistake of a trade that was not worth it in the short term or the long term.
The Trade Itself
After making a statement regarding his disappointment, the team went after Tarasenko instead; Drury had other ideas. Instead of standing by idly, he pushed all his chips to the middle of the table. It was indeed a gamble and playing a risky game. And despite all the stuff regarding his injury history, which was, in fact, the truth, Drury made the trade anyways. In a three-team trade, Drury acquired Kane. Going the other way to Chicago was a conditional second-round pick (2023), and a fourth-round pick (2025). The Arizona Coyotes helped with the deal and received a conditional third-round pick (2025). In addition, the second-round choice to Chicago stays a second-round selection due to the failure of not reaching the conference finals.
Chicago did well unloading the franchise iconic winger, but it was a big pill to swallow for the Rangers. In addition, they did not have much to show for acquiring him.
His Level Of Play
Patrick Kane, traded to NYR, is a veteran playmaking winger. His offence is underrated by public xGoal models due to his elite cross-slot passing, although admittedly that has taken a big hit this year. Has been probably the worst defensive forward in the NHL. #NYR pic.twitter.com/R6GzD8RHNZ
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 28, 2023
When you heard about the news regarding the hip injury, that should be drawn to some concern. It was no secret, and his level of play was evident because of it. Kane did look slow and was missing a step with his skating. In addition, his defensive impact was at an all-time low. You can say that he was one of the worst defensive players in the league. The season prior, Kane was coming off a 92-point year which was his best since 2018-19. But this year took a downward spiral production-wise. Before the trade, Kane notched 45 points in 54 games and scored 16 goals. And then he became a Ranger.
It took time for Kane to settle in. Once he did, production started to come. Kane finished his regular season with five goals and seven assists. It is definitely not what you could have expected. Not to mention Gerard Gallant tinkered with the lines so much that it was hard for anyone to build chemistry. In addition, Kane and Panarin felt forced into trying to spark that magic they had in their time with Chicago. Kane went on to finish with the 16th best Corsi For. In terms of generating quality chances, the expected goals share was 13.99-10.65 in favour of the opponent. Not to mention scoring chances were 155-108 as well with the opponent leading the way. At the end of the day, Kane was brought in to provide a spark offensively, or so everyone thought. That was not the case entirely, but other things did factor in as well.
Kane did have a good playoff for the team. Arguably, he was one of the few players that showed up for the series. Kane was a near point per game player with one goal and five assists in seven games. His goal was magnificent and looked like vintage Kane out there. Upon his exit interview, Kane did disclose how he felt about himself and the series.
Last Year’s Deadline Was The Right Move
Here is where things get more concrete regarding the Patrick Kane trade. It does not regard Kane at all. However, there is a big difference between last year’s deadline and this year’s deadline. Chris Drury was essentially living in 2017 this trade deadline, whereas last year he acquired talent that for a role and was executed properly. That deadline specifically was Andrew Copp, Frank Vatrano, and Tyler Motte. While Motte had the same role this year, the other two were the real prize.
Vatrano was a depth winger that turned out to catch fire playing on the top line. Playing the most minutes alongside Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad the line had the third-best expected goals percentages (56%). In addition, their 11 goals were the third most among lines logging more than 90 minutes on the ice. For reference, Tarasenko alongside them managed three goals as a line. Kane was better alongside Kreider and Trocheck than with Panarin. Vatrano went on to score eight goals with the Rangers in the regular season, while also adding five more in the playoffs. Copp was more versatile as he was able to play centre and wing. In addition, he was a point-per-game player when he arrived on Broadway. Alongside Ryan Strome and Panarin, the line had a goal differential of 10-2. They also went on to average 3.7 expected goals per 60 minutes. The impact he left was immediate and was felt the rest of the way. And like Vatrano, Copp was key in the playoffs.
The main point is the shiny toys are not always the best. No slight to Kane, but he was the shiny toy that you felt you needed to have but did not need. Copp and Vatrano may not be in the same tier as Kane, but they were more impactful. It is not about making the biggest splash, but acquiring the right player. Kane is a prominent name that went to a big market.
Kane And His Future
"I look at the series and I say, 'If I felt a little better, I can help us win that series.' It's a little disappointing and depressing."
Patrick Kane talks about his overall health: pic.twitter.com/7Y8KBruk3e
— Rangers Videos (@SNYRangers) May 3, 2023
Now that the Patrick Kane trade is done it is time to look into the future. Kane did go on to have hip surgery and his recovery time is 4-6 months. Brad Marchand had hip surgery last offseason and did come back this season, so a return for Kane is likely. But does he return to New York? With the Rangers having just $11 million in cap space, a deal for Kane will be difficult to come by. Drury still needs to sign K’Andre Miller and Alexis Lafreniere to new contracts. But it is this exact reason why Drury chose to go all in. The cap space is limited and he tried to maximize the team while he still could. Trading for Kane, in the end, was not worth it. A disappointing first-round exit and a player who will likely sign elsewhere. Given the price tag, it was not a move that catapulted the team to the top of the hockey mountain.
Main Photo: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports
