Brian Hedger On Patrick Kane Injury: 'It Doesn't Look Good'
(CBS) Blackhawks star winger Patrick Kane, who is tied for the league lead in points with 64 (27 goals, 37 assists), was crosschecked into the boards in the first period of last night's 3-2 win against the Florida Panthers by Alex Petrovic may be shelved for several weeks with a left clavicle injury.
NHL.com's Brian Hedger joined the Mully and Hanley show this morning to discuss the injury and what the Blackhawks' options are moving forward.
"I did talk to a couple of sources last night that I trust," Hedger said, "and the thing I got out of both of them was the exact same phrase, 'It doesn't look good.' That doesn't portend good things for Patrick Kane or the Blackhawks. Because that means, in my mind, that it's going to be an extended amount of time that he's going to miss."
The Kane injury also impacts what the cap-strapped Blackhawks might be able to do on the trade market. Trading a player like Patrick Sharp now seems unlikely.
"Absolutely not," Hedger said. "You can't move him (Sharp). You can't move Bryan Bickell, who is a $4 million cap hit that you potentially could've moved to clear some space and maybe bring in another defensmen, you can't do any of that stuff now. The flip-side of that is, this might actually make it more likely that they would make a trade."
Putting Kane on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) is an option, which would keep him out for 24 days and 10 regular-season games. However, it would provide some cap relief for general manager Stan Bowman as he works the phone in advance of Monday's trade deadline.
The Blackhawks announced they've recalled Teuvo Teravainen from Rockford.