Latest Report Suggests Evander Kane Could Return Ahead of Schedule
Good news for Oilers fans, as it appears as though Evander Kane could return to action sooner than expected. For those who may have forgotten, Kane suffered a gruesome laceration from the skate of Tampa Bay Lightning forward Pat Maroon on November 11th.
Initially, the timeline for his return was approximately 3-4 months. However, according to Kurt Leavins of The Edmonton Journal, Kane could return in as few as three weeks:
If Leavins' reporting is accurate, that puts Kane a full month or so ahead of schedule, which would be massive for Edmonton. In 14 games this season Kane has 13 points (5g-8a); a pace, which - if maintained - would be fifth on the Oilers.
Since Kane's injury, the Oilers have a record of 13-10-3 with a +9 goal differential. It's safe to say that this team would be scary-bad without Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
As Leavins stated, Kane's return would provide a much needed buff to the Oilers' offensive depth, which can best be described as minimal. The only negative one could possibly point out is that the Oilers can no longer stash Kane's cap-hit on LTIR and use it to secure another player via trade. Although, the club would certainly rather have Kane in the lineup than save a few bucks on their salary cap.
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