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No real surprise with the news, issued Sunday afternoon by NHL’s Department of Player Safety, that Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane has been suspended for 1 game.
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The power winger received a 5-minute major for boarding Colorado Avalanche center Nazem Kadri just 66 seconds into Saturday night’s Game 3. That was the end of the night for Kadri, and could easily have been for Kane as well. After all, Oilers fans saw Connor McDavid get 5 and a game for boarding earlier this season for what this observer deems a lesser infraction. Which made a subsequent suspension a likelier outcome if anything. I anticipated it in writing Kane’s player grade sometime in the wee hours:
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- #91 Evander Kane, 3. Put his team in a big hole when he was whistled for a 5-minute penalty for the above infraction vs. Nazem Kadri in the game’s first minute. Hard to disagree with that call given the video evidence; I thought he was fortunate to remain in the game (Kadri didn’t) and suspect he may not be available for the next one…
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And so it has turned out to be.
It’s the third time in the last 2 years that the Oilers will play an elimination game without the services of a player lost to suspension. despues de Josh Archibald missed Game 4 of last year’s series vs. Winnipeg Jets and Darnell Nurse sat out Game 6 vs. Los Angeles earlier this season, this time around the Oilers will have to make do without Kane. All 3 were 1-game bans issued for nasty hits of various descriptions.
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While the video of the sequence is embedded in the tweet immediately above, I recommend to the interested observer to take the 2 minutes required to watch the full video and explanation by DoPS embedded in the one below:
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In Kane the Oilers are losing an important player. (Of course, Avalanche supporters will say the same about Kadri, out indefinitely with a suspected thumb injury.)
But it’s the Oilers’ #91 who currently leads the NHL with 13 playoff goals, 3 more than any other shooter. Meanwhile his 17 points from him have him tied for 6th with none other than Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar.
Indeed, since first suiting up for the Oilers on January 29, Kane leads the team with 35 goals in 58 games, leading a tight 3-way race with Leon Draisaitl (33) and McDavid (32). Make it an even 100 goals among the 3 of them over that stretch.
Alas, that scoring has dried up in the current series. Kane’s last goal opened the scoring in Game 1, his last point in the second period of that same game. Over the series he’s got 1-1-2, -5 with 9 PiM. Kane is bringing the physicality with 17 hits, but he’s mustered just 6 shots to this point with 2 in each game, this after he averaged 4.25 shots per game in the first 2 rounds including at least 3 shots in 10 of 12 games.
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But now we know in advance that Kane will have 0 shots or hits, or goals or points for that matter. That leaves a gigantic hole on LW for the do-or-die game.
No doubt Jay Woodcroft will choose to promote from within, but when it comes time to adding one more player to the “starting 11”, surely the one closest to exhibiting Kane’s range of skills is raw rookie Dylan Holloway. Obviously it would be unrealistic to expect that (or really any) sort of offense to the equation, he does have an impressive range of speed, power, and aggressive puck pursuit which can find a home on any line, not just the top 6.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. At this point with the Oilers reeling and seemingly out of answers, surely a jolt of youthful enthusiasm wouldn’t go amiss. That’s one thing Holloway brings in spades. What he needs next, is a big league experience. Might this be the time?
More to eat.
