After several seasons with the divisional rival Edmonton Oilers, Evander Kane joined the Vancouver Canucks last offseason with hopes of adding offense and helping the team return to the playoffs.
Neither happened, as Kane recorded just 31 points while Vancouver finished last in the Western Conference.
Kane is now an unrestricted free agent after completing his contract, which carried a salary-cap hit of just under $6 million. And based on the latest reports, his time in the NHL has come to a close – but he’s not done playing professional hockey.
Former Vancouver Canucks Forward Evander Kane Heading Overseas To Russia, Per Agent
According to a report from The Daily Faceoff on Wednesday evening, the agent for former Canucks forward Evander Kane has revealed that he’s leaving North America and is going to Russia with the hopes of signing in the KHL to continue his professional hockey career.
Additionally, that report was confirmed by Kane’s agent Dan Milstein, who said on ‘The Sheet with Jeff Marek’ that he was in fact going to Russia, and is close to inking a contract in the KHL.
“We had a couple of things here in North America, but in the end, Evander decided to take his talents to Russia,” said Milstein. “We’re very close to signing a deal with a KHL team. So, over the next couple of days or so, we’ll make an announcement. But he’ll be playing the season in Russia at the KHL level.”
During his NHL career, Kane scored 339 goals with 309 assists in 1,001 games.
Evander Kane’s Time In Vancouver Did Not Go According To Plan
Before signing in Vancouver, Kane had helped the Oilers reach consecutive berths in the Stanley Cup Final, and he was brought to his hometown club with the expectation of bringing veteran leadership and timely scoring.
“I think every team is looking to be harder to play against and for us, with the group we have here, when a player like this comes available to the cost, we felt we have a chance to upgrade our top-nine, mid-six, and become a harder team to play against,” now-former Canucks GM Patrik Allvin said shortly after acquiring Kane last summer. “Obviously, Evander, the way his contract was structured, he had a preferred 15 teams to go to, and Vancouver was his preferred destination.”
However, Kane only managed 31 points with the Canucks in what would be his only season with the club, while they suffered through a miserable campaign.
Not only did the Canucks not bring back Kane, but they also fired head coach Adam Foote along with Allvin; they replaced Foote with former Canucks forward Manny Malhotra, while also hiring former forward Ryan Johnson as GM.
So far, the Canucks have stumbled out to a miserable start to the season, and are once again in last place in their division through the first 17 games of the season; they have only three wins.
Agent Confirms Ex-Canucks Forward Evander Kane Finished in NHL