Pittsburgh Hockey Insider has no direct affiliation to the Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL or NHLPA
Evander Kane so injured he can barely sit on the bench
The players and coaches must give their all during the demanding two-month Stanley Cup competition. It's difficult to find someone playing at their best right now with the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers both making it to the Stanley Cup Final.
Players often choose not to participate in the morning skate, particularly during this season when physical rest is crucial. After missing the morning skate, hockey experts began to speculate about Oilers forward Evander Kane's suitability for Game 2.
The 32-year-old is obviously toying with alignment, but he has stated that he will start for Edmonton in Game 2.
«I think I'm going to be playing tonight,» Kane told a scrum of reporters. «It's the Stanley Cup Final, so I think everybody's geared up and ready to play.
«There's lots of guys going through different things. I'm excited about tonight's game and responding from Game 1.»
«There's lots of guys going through different things. I'm excited about tonight's game and responding from Game 1.»
Through the first eleven games, Kane had seven points, since the injuries have started to pile up, Kane has been far less effective. The power forward only has one point in his last eight games.
Journalist for Sportsnet, Mark Spector revealed that one source is telling him that Kane very seldomly sat on the bench during Game 1. Whatever the injury aligning him, sitting doesn't work.
No Kane at practice, which is normal.
One thing, source tells me Kane never (or very seldom) sat on the bench in Game 1.
Whatever his injury, sitting doesn't work for him.
He's walking the line between courageous and ineffective, 1 pt in 8 games.
One thing, source tells me Kane never (or very seldom) sat on the bench in Game 1.
Whatever his injury, sitting doesn't work for him.
He's walking the line between courageous and ineffective, 1 pt in 8 games.
There's no denying that Kane's injury affects his effectiveness. It begs the question of when his playmaking becomes a liability to the team. This time of year, everyone wants to be starting to help the team win, but if your play starts to negatively impact the team, it might be time to be benched for a few games.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 10 | 285 ANSWERS Evander Kane so injured he can barely sit on the bench Do you think Evander Kane should sit for a game to get healthy? | ||
| Yes, he has been useless the last stretch | 226 | 79.3 % |
| No, Oilers don't have any better players to insert | 59 | 20.7 % |
| List of polls | ||