CHICAGO – The on-ice decisions are not the issue.
Patrick Kane can still make those, as evidenced by the three-goal, four-point show he put on a sluggish Toronto Maple Leafs squad Sunday.
The man was dancing and dealing during a rare 5-3 Chicago Blackhawks victory like it was 2015 all over again.
Kane ripped a laser clean and in stride over Ilya Samonov’s left shoulder from the face-off dot.
He slipped his second chance five hole after patiently waiting out defenceman Morgan Rielly in a net-front juke.
And he cheekily banked his third off the back of Samsonov from behind the net, then emphatically and correctly pointed “good goal,” overruling the ref’s original call. For a moment, Kane was the only one in the barn who knew the puck was in. Shades of 2010, anyone?
When the hat trick was confirmed and “Chelsea Dagger” was queued up once more, the 20,979 who came to cheer on the worst team in hockey rose to their feet and littered the ice with doffed chapeaus. Waves of them.
Kane has made a conscious effort to cherish these final home games before the March 3 trade deadline. There’s only two left before the unknown, so he’s sponging up as much love as possible.
“They’re awesome. I thought they were really into the game,” Kane said, sitting at his stall. “A couple of times out there, you just get chills with the way they’re into it, with the team not doing well and the position we’re in. And it was amazing.
“The crowds have been great. I mean, they’ve been into every game. You can tell they want us to win. They’re living and dying with us every play, so it’s impressive.”
Discussing the loyal fan base, that’s easy.
Deciding to wave them goodbye, not so much.
“It is what it is,” Kane said, with a deep sigh, when the inescapable topic of a potential trade popped up. “I mean, just the situation we’re in… what are you gonna do about it?”
Off ice, the man looks torn and stressed. Utterly undecided.
Prior to puck drop, general manager Kyle Davidson had made it clear that the ball is in Kane’s court here.
“I don’t think he’s lying when he says that. I’m the one with the no-movement clause. We’ve been having discussions, and even with my agent, pretty much every day for the past few weeks,” Kane said. “So, it’s been ramped up for a while.”
What does your gut tell you?
“I don’t know. I think if I knew that, I’d probably make the decision already.”
Kane let his emotions on the topic seep out in the wake of Vladimir Tarasenko’s trade to the New York Rangers — the team believed by many to be at the top of his destination list.
Reportedly, there was some level of mutual interest with the Maple Leafs as well, but Kyle Dubas made his big splash at forward for Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari Friday.
“I don’t think there’s really — at least that I know of — much discussion of that being an option,” Kane said. “I know there’s a lot of different reports out there, and not all of them are true. So, gotta be careful what you listen to.”
What is true: The Kane that floated around ineffectively in the Blackhawks’ lacklustre loss in Toronto Wednesday looked nothing like the crafty and emotionally engaged one who spearheaded Sunday’s win and looked every ounce like a game-breaker who could boost a contender.
The difference between the two Kanes against the Maple Leafs?
“The one in Toronto didn’t get any free looks at the goalie,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said.
From the Maple Leafs’ point of view, a loss to the NHL’s 32nd-place can be chalked up to tired legs and starting a recently ill goaltender on the second half of a back-to-back.
“We didn’t play a good enough or smart enough game to make up for what we were lacking in energy,” Keefe said.
“When you’re tired, you gotta be really smart and structured and all of that, and some of the clean looks we gave up tonight were the result of just not being smart.”
Still, it takes a finisher like Kane to seize advantage of those opportunities.
March 3, it seems, is not being viewed exclusively as an opportunity.
Kane’s heart is here, even if his brain can make sense of another playoff taste, something he has enjoyed just once in the past six springs.
Heck, on a night like this, where he can bring the house down, would he consider re-signing instead?
“I mean, of course. Of course, you want to play in front of this crowd and be able to perform,” Kane said.
“It’s been an amazing place to play for my whole career, so of course you want it to continue.”
Fox’s Fast 5
• Mark Giordano spent 15 seasons in Calgary before slipping on a new sweater. Here’s his thoughts on what Kane must be feeling in his 16th season in Chicago:
“It’s weird. It’s a weird situation when you’ve been somewhere for your whole career. And I’m sure he’s thinking about it. Thoughts are going through his mind. Different emotions. But when you think about Patrick Kane, you think about him winning Stanley Cups in Chicago for sure.”
• Rasmus Sandin “took a bump” in Saturday’s win over Montreal, so he was swapped out of the lineup for Conor Timmins. Keefe assures the injury isn’t serious.
• Chicago coach Luke Richardson on Ryan O’Reilly: “When the game is on the line, that’s the guy you want on the ice.”
• How do you pump up a crowd to watch the last-place team in the NHL?
Hollered the United Center’s in-arena host after warm-ups: “We’ve got two anthems tonight, folks!!!”
• The Blackhawks dress three Johnsons (Jack, Tyler, Reese) and two Joneses (Seth, Caleb), and their nameplates all read JOHNSON and JONES, respectively. No initials.
Pity the visiting play-by-play man.
