Blackhawks star disappointed he did not get traded to Rangers?

Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane. Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports

Blackhawks star seems disappointed he did not get traded to Rangers

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 2/10/23

With the Chicago Blackhawks starting a massive rebuild it seems inevitable that star forward Patrick Kane is going to be on the way out before the March 3 trade deadline.

He seems pretty disappointed his preferred destination might now be off the table.

That destination was apparently the New York Rangers, and following their trade for St. Louis Blues star Vladimir Tarasenko on Thursday that would seem to eliminate them as a potential landing spot for Kane.

Especially after it was reported that the Rangers had concerns about the status of a hip injury that has plagued Kane.

On Friday, Kane made it pretty clear he was disappointed to see the Rangers add a top-line forward that was not him.

Patrick Kane on the Rangers' Tarasenko deal: "It’s not like the happiest I’ve been to hear about a trade. ... If things are going to happen, that was a team I was definitely looking at. It seems like they kind of filled their void and went ahead and made a deal."
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) February 10, 2023

That is a shockingly candid comment to hear from a player about another team's trade, and it shows just how much Kane would probably like to get away from Chicago's rebuild and get to a winning team.

The Blackhawks have missed the playoffs in five of their past six years, while that only appearance was in the expanded playoff year when 24 teams made the playoffs (the Blackhawks had the 23rd-best record in the league that year). Before this season they started to gut their roster, and now that Kane and Jonathan Toews are pending unrestricted free agents they are almost certain to be traded.

Kane has a no-trade clause and can ultimately dictate where he goes, and it seemed the Rangers were high on his list. But he has also been dragging out the process by not making his intentions for a trade clear just yet. The Rangers could not wait forever, had a chance to make a move, and they did.

Now Kane will have to figure out his next destination. Carolina, Toronto and his hometown of Buffalo could be potential options.

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