Has Patrick Kane Earned Himself a Big Contract this Offseason?

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It seems history may be repeating itself for Blackhawks' fans. In the reference here to Patrick Kane, the connection points to Chris Chelios (who just had his #7 retired by Chicago) are now clear. The Hawks, in turning a page in terms of franchise direction, may have jettisoned a team icon just a bit too early.

Kane, now 35, is playing excellent hockey of late. Now over a point per game after an outstanding 4 game stretch in which the veteran winger netted 7 points (in said 4 games) he now sports a season that has 31 points in just 30 matchups. That's an 85 point pace (per 82) and directly coincides with his career numbers in which he has averaged an 85.9 point season (per 82) over 17 seasons.

Over his career, Patrick Kane did well by avoiding heavy contact and the expectation was that he could potentially play well into his mid to late 30s. The "hip-resurfacing procedure" certainly gave pause to this notion and even lessened a bigger trade return just a season ago. While the short stint in New York didn't go the way he had hoped, it seems now that Detroit was indeed the correct landing place for the Buffalo, NY native.

The question seems to be now, what is Patrick Kane's next contract going to look like? With good friend and linemate Alex DeBrincat also on the roster, the Red Wings currently in a playoff position, and the added merchandise stream (assumed) it's expected that the Red Wings will be quite keen to resign Patrick Kane before he reaches the open market.

The easy answer would be to tie DeBrincat's remaining 3 seasons (signed a 4 year deal upon his trade from Ottawa) to any Patrick Kane deal. In terms of roster constuction, Dylan Larkin has been extended as well as DeBrincat leaving the likes of young stars Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider as potential players yet to get high AAV deals. Could the Red Wings strucure a deal in which Patrick Kane gets the deal he wants while still leaving flexibility for Detroit to add more pieces in the coming seasons?

Did the Blackhawks make a mistake by saying goodbye to Patrick Kane too soon?

No, the Chicago Blackhawks and Detroit Red Wings are in completely two different timeframes in terms of their rebuilds. The Red Wings have a roster full of highly picked players that are now coming into their own and Patrick Kane seems like he was the right addition at the right time. Chicago, on the other hand, is just starting that process and while Connor Bedard is one heck of a first step,.... it is just the first step.

The other aspect of this hypothetical is that Detroit just named Dyaln Larkin (in the prime of his career at 27) their captain and Chicago just said goodbye to their long time captain (Jonathan Toews). That transistion of leadership would not lend well to the Hawks organically coming together as a new unit with Patrick Kane (and the old dynasty moniker lingering around with him) still on the roster.

So in essence this is a perfect scenario for Detroit, however it would not have played out the same way in Chicago (in theory). However the season plays out, Blackhawk Up is cheering on Patrick Kane. We hope he does well, continues his strong play, and earns himself a long contract with the team of his choosing. Whether that's in Detroit or any other city, make no mistake about it.... he'll always be Chicago's #88.

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