Any chance of a Patrick Kane return to Blackhawks? Mailbag, Part 2 – Scott Powers

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5511393/2024/05/23/blackhawks-patrick-kane-offseason/

What are the chances the Blackhawks sign Patrick Kane this offseason? — Greg B.

There were a few variations of this question, so let’s get to it. To begin with, I was confident the Blackhawks were going to trade Patrick Kane last season. I was confident they weren’t going to re-sign him last summer. Up until a few weeks ago, I was confident Kane wouldn’t be returning to the Blackhawks next season.

But, now, I’m not so confident about what’s going to happen. I’ve heard enough in the past few weeks to believe that the Blackhawks are going to at least internally discuss whether to re-sign Kane. The answer may not change, but I do think it’s an agenda item as they lead up to free agency.

There is the question of whether Kane wants to return, but I do believe he’s open to it. Kyle Davidson made sure Kane’s departure was as smooth as possible, and that the relationship wasn’t fractured. As much as Kane is a star wherever he plays, it’s at another level in Chicago. I’m sure he was reminded of that when he came back with the Red Wings. He’s also comfortable in every way, on and off the ice, in Chicago. I’m sure he’d like to make a run at Stan Mikita’s franchise points record (Kane needs 242 points to match Mikita) or be in a Blackhawks jersey as he goes after Mike Modano’s career numbers as the top U.S.-born player.

From the Blackhawks’ perspective, what would sell them on re-signing Kane? I think it would partly be Kane stating exactly how much longer he wanted to play. The Blackhawks would love for Kane to retire as a Chicago Blackhawk. That may happen regardless,with something like a one-day contract, but it’d be more meaningful for him and the organization if he played his final season in Chicago. That’s not to say the Blackhawks would ask Kane, who will turn 36 in November, to retire after next season, but they also wouldn’t want to go through something anything similar to the 2022-23 season again, where they’re waiting for him to decide what’s next.

They also wouldn’t want to push Kane out again if he did return. They’d like for it to be a mutual and fair timetable for his last dance. With a lot of prospects coming, the Blackhawks are hopeful to eventually be led by a new core. Just as Davidson previously decided that it was in the best interests of the organization not to re-sign Kane and Jonathan Toews, that’s not a conversation Davidson would want to have again if Kane came back and wasn’t ready to retire when those young players were ready to step in his past role.

Again, the Blackhawks may ultimately decide that Kane doesn’t fit with what they’re trying to build. There was a fear before that the young players would defer too much to Kane. But maybe Davidson’s opinion has changed. Now that Connor Bedard has a year under his belt and Kane has played away from Chicago and fixed his hip, maybe everyone is in a different place and Kane’s return can be looked at differently. We shall see.