Two of the top teams in the Western Conference continue to be the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars. One player both teams are interested in is Vancouver Canucks left winger Evander Kane of Vancouver, British Columbia.
What does Kane bring to the table?
When Kane is at his best, he brings a lot of grit and energy. He has 335 career regular season goals and 32 career playoff goals. In the 2022 playoffs, Kane led all players in goals (13) and even strength goals (11).
What is the downside of acquiring Kane?
Kane’s discipline. Throughout his entire career he has been known to take dumb penalties, and at times he has cost his team games. In the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Kane had 44 penalty minutes. Of the 44 penalty minutes, 32 penalty minutes came in the six games the Oilers played against the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals. Kane also led all players in penalty minutes during the 2018-19 regular season with the San Jose Sharks (153), the 2019-20 regular season with the Sharks (122), the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs with the Sharks (61), the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs with the Oilers (37), and the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs with the Oilers (37). In the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Kane also had 46 penalty minutes.
Evander Kane in 2025-26
Kane has nine goals and 25 assists for 24 points in 51 games with the Canucks. He is a -18 with 57 penalty minutes, six power-play points, one game-winning goal, 124 shots on goal, 17 faceoff wins, 18 hits, 85 blocked shots, 11 takeaways and 51 giveaways.
Why could the Stars be interested in Kane?
According to Reddit, Kane is actually following a Dallas real estate company on Instagram. The company is BuildTX Solutions, which is a home remodelling company in Texas. Kane has connections to the Stars’ organization. That is because Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan is the former assistant coach of the Oilers when Kane was playing for Edmonton.
Why could the Avalanche be interested in Kane?
The answer here is to help build a little more offensive consistency. On the weekend, it was a topsy turvy weekend for Colorado. On Friday night, the Avalanche were clobbered 7-3 by the Philadelphia Flyers, and on Sunday, the Avalanche beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1. In the win over Toronto, Avalanche centre Brock Nelson had his fifth career NHL hat trick. Colorado does not need to tinker much. Their 79 points leads the National Hockey League.
