Insider Believes They Know Where Patrick Kane Will Sign Next

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Matt Garland
September 6, 2023 (1:26 PM)

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With training camps opening up in a few weeks general managers around the league are busy trying to tweak their teams before everyone comes together after the summer break. Rumors have been running wild on where veteran winger Patrick Kane will sign.

Arthur Staple of the Athletic predicts a Rangers reunion with Kane sometime in November.

The 35 year old is currently recovering from offseason hip surgery and won't be fully recovered for a few more months.

While playing hurt Kane still put up 5 goals and 12 points in 19 regular season games since coming over in the deadline trade. He added 1 goal and 6 points in the Rangers seven game series against the New Jersey Devils.

Kane turns 35 on November 19. This is important because he will be eligible to sign a 35+ contract. This would make him eligible for performance bonuses instead of a set salary. So, if the Rangers signed him for a league minimum deal worth $775,000 for the season but set a bonus of $1 million for making the playoffs, he could make $1.775 million for the year. They could apply multiple bonuses so that the total gets larger.

Bonuses carry over to the following season in the form of overages if a team cannot fit them in under the salary cap. It could be worth the squeeze when looking at how deep this potential roster is.

37 year old Blake Wheeler signed a one-year $800k contract this offseason with the Rangers after being bought out by the Winnipeg Jets. Wheeler has earned an estimated $74,551,219 in his career playing hockey. At this point it's clear he is playing to take a serious run at the Stanley Cup.

Kane has estimated career earnings of $115,637,195 per cap friendly. He has won three Stanley Cups, a Conn Smythe Trophy, the Hart Memorial Trophy and an Art Ross Trophy. He is a sure fire Hall of Famer when his time comes. What is left to prove for Kane? Maybe all that's left is legacy and what better way to continue to build that by playing with a very good Rangers team who is poised to take a run at the holy grail of hockey.