Evander Kane could play as soon as Tuesday night!

It was a shock as you know to see that as soon as the San Jose Sharks terminated the contract of controversial forward Evander Kane, there were literally dozens of teams lining up to add him to their roster.

While Kane’s off-ice life is in shambles, he’s still a very effective player on the ice. This is a man who filed for bankruptcy, went through a messy public divorce, was accused of betting on his own games, was suspended 21 games for passing off a phony COVID-19 vaccination card and allegedly flew and crossed the border while knowingly being COVID-19 positive… all in the past calendar year. So you might be wonder, “Why on Earth would a team want this guy?” But the truth is, he fills the net.

And the Edmonton Oilers are not willing to pass up on that. However, the team that was rumoured to be close to signing Kane earlier this month has to wait. The NHL is conducting an investigation into Kane (the third one this year) following allegations that he crossed the Canada/USA border after testing positive for COVID-19. In effect, Kane went against not only NHL protocol, but government protocol by traveling while sick.

But the result of the investigation could come shortly and reporter Irfaan Gaffar believes that Kane could play on Tuesday night. As he puts it: “Strong indication is if all goes well he could play Tuesday in Vancouver against the Canucks.
And who are the Canucks hosting on Tuesday night? The Oilers, yes.

Kane put up 22 goals and 49 points in just 56 games last season. He has the potential to be a 35+ goal scorer and 70+ point player over a full season and that’s why teams have been interested in him. Throw in the fact that he’ll be signed for likely much cheaper than the $7 million annual salary he earned with the Sharks and it’s a no-brainer for a lot of clubs, including the Oilers who are reportedly the front-runner. And with Gaffar’s update, maybe it’s just a matter of closing the investigation to see Kane under contract in Edmonton.

TSN’s Darren Dreger had reported that if and when Kane avoids suspension he’d likely join the Oilers. And yes, it sounds more and more likely.

Buckle up, Oilers fans. Things are about to get a whole lot more interesting.