Evander Kane, rugged forward and former first-round draft pick for the Winnipeg Jets, has seen his name swirl in trade talks in recent days culminating with some saying he could reportedly be dealt "by the end of the month."
While the veracity of that report is somewhat questionable, Eklund of Hockeybuzz.com says that the more intriguing aspect to this potential situation is not who is interested, but instead, who was once interested and is now no longer in the running for Kane's services.
While several teams have interest in Kane, what I am finding more interesting are all the murmurs about teams who "were interested but have fallen out of contention." Such language says a lot in the rumor world and often points to a sort of "underground market" that is forming as the price for a player comes into focus.
Thus far this season, Kane has played in only 9 games due to a knee injury suffered in October, and amassed a single goal and a pair of assists in that time, according to NHL.com.
Despite the low point totals, he has played well since his return, but could the injury, coupled with the Jets' asking price, be scaring teams off?
In the past the Flyers, Rangers, Blues, Sabres, Leafs and Bruins were at least keeping an eye on any possible movement of this player, but as of this morning it appears only Montreal and the NY Islanders are having high level discussions regarding a possible deal. That tells me the price is VERY high.
Kane is a strong, talented player, but hasn't shown the scoring knack the Jets were hoping to see when they selected him fourth overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft - he hasn't eclipsed 19 goals in a season since potting 30 in 2011-12, the same season he topped out at 57 points.
There is no word yet as to what, exactly, the Jets are asking for, but with a 9-6-2 record and sitting fairly pretty at 3rd in the Central Division, Winnipeg is surely in no hurry to trade a valuable asset for anything less than a premium price.
