Former Blackhawks star Patrick Kane joins Rangers after trade
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Blackhawks fans, get used to seeing Patrick Kane in another team's sweater. The legendary Blackhawks winger officially joined the Rangers on Thursday, two days after he was traded from Chicago to New York.
Kane laced up his skates for the Rangers on Thursday morning as they practiced ahead of their matchup against the Senators. Kane will make his Rangers debut Thursday night at Madison Square Garden, playing for a new team after 16 years with the Blackhawks.
After Kane waived his no-trade clause, the Blackhawks traded him to New York on Tuesday for defenseman Andy Welinski and a pair of draft picks, one of which could become a future first-round pick if the Rangers advance far enough in the playoffs.
Kane is now set to make a playoff push in New York, something the Blackhawks aren't likely to do in the near future.
Skating for the Rangers is unfamiliar territory for Kane, but not completely, as he'll be on a line with old teammate Artemi Panarin, who he skated with from 2015 to 2017.
Kane hopes the move results in him hoisting another Stanley Cup.
"It's been obviously a whirlwind past week here, and I think now I'm just excited to get to the rink and meet everyone," he said. "Definitely you go back and forth in your head a bunch of times about what's right, but I just feel like this is such an amazing opportunity with what they have going on here in New York, and the option is still there to possibly make a move. Obviously, it wasn't the easiest decision, but I'm really just excited to be here with this team, with the amount of skill and good players they have here. It's just another chance to make a run. So I felt like it would be a good experience, and get out of the comfort zone a little bit, and be able to play for a different franchise, a different team, and like I said they have a great team here."
Meantime, the Blackhawks are paying tribute to the three-time Stanley Cup champion with a massive "Thank You 88" message chalked onto the United Center parking lot, and inviting fans to come write their own message to Kane in the middle of Parking Lot C on Madison Street across from the stadium.
