Red Wings Trade Speculation: Evander Kane

It’s the new hotness, folks. Evander Kane has reportedly been put up in trade talks. The reason? Because he wears track suits to midday team meetings, and the Winnipeg Jets and Canadian media have gunned down his character to make him seem like a jerk, when he’s actually just a young kid with immense skill and upside. With the health of Johan Franzen unknown going forward, this might be an extremely enticing opportunity for Ken Holland and company…

Player Bio:

Birth Date: August 2, 1991 (23 years old)

Place of Birth: Vancouver, B.C.

Shoots: Left

Experience:5 years

Drafted by Atlanta in 2009, 4th overall.

He’s flashy, competitive, and electrifying. Evander Kane has a natural instinct for goal-scoring and shows extreme confidence in himself. He’s also the kind of player who plays physical, and won’t back down from a battle. I suppose you could say that he lacks true playmaking abilities, but those are things that could certainly be changed with a new team to play around.

The Pros and Cons:

The pros are simple with Kane, his skill level is attractive to any NHL team. He competes hard, and has capabilities of producing when he’s on the ice. He’s been a victim of steady regression over the past few seasons, but that could be pinned on the team he plays for, and who he plays with as linemates. I think if you put him in a position to succeed, he will do just that. His cap-hit is $5.25 million through 2018-2019, which seems more than acceptable for a player with his skill-set. The cons with him, of course, are silly to dish about. Media all around the league has bashed him for having a bad attitude, and a low sense of maturity. He’s 23, not 33. Give the kid a break, would you? He’s confident in himself, and that’s a good thing, you would think. But if his regression continues, his cap-hit could be considered a pain in the ass. I just don’t think that it sustains, though. Especially if he goes to a team where he will be put in a spot to succeed as a 1st or 2nd line scoring winger.

Price Tag:

The cost could be high, and that’s the biggest downfall of this deal for fans and for Ken Holland. I’m just speculating here, this is just what I think it could end up being, and what I would be decently comfortable with.

• Teemu Pulkkinen, Alexey Marchenko, 1st round pick
• Darren Helm, Xavier Ouellet, 2nd round pick

Swap names around all you want.. I think Winnipeg is looking for young defensemen, and young wingers. Another really good name to toss into the mix would be Tomas Jurco.

Conclusion:

Reports show that Winnipeg is shopping him around, and I suspect handfuls of teams will be on their doorstep ready to make offers. This will in turn drive the price up, I think. Personally, I would absolutely love to have Evander Kane on Pavel Datsyuk’s wing. The looming concern is that I just don’t believe that Ken Holland would be willing to fork over the necessary assets for him. I imagine Kevin Cheveldayoff will want to acquire a 1st round pick, prospect, and a winger to replace him with. Does Detroit have those things? Yes. Evander Kane is the kind of player that we hope Tomas Jurco will be one day, so I’m completely willing to dish out Darren Helm, Tomas Jurco, draft picks, or prospects to acquire him. Of course not all of those things combined, but a happy combination that benefits both sides. I’ll let you guys dish on this. Let’s hear it.

Would you trade for Evander Kane?