The Edmonton Oilers have signed Evander Kane, a hockey player known for his goal-scoring ability as much as for his off-ice conduct.
Kane’s agent Dan Milstein tweeted the news Thursday afternoon, saying Kane will travel to Edmonton that evening.
The Oilers confirmed the acquisition in a tweet Thursday night.
Details of the deal were not immediately released, but Milstein said Kane will play for the Oilers for the rest of the 2021-22 season.
In a news release Thursday, the NHL announced it had concluded its investigation into Kane’s cross-border travel during the holidays.
The report found that there was insufficient evidence to “conclusively find that Mr. Kane knowingly made misrepresentations regarding his COVID-19 status or test results in connection with his international travel.”
Therefore, he was an unrestricted free agent and eligible to sign and play for any NHL club without restriction.
Earlier this month, the San Jose Sharks took steps to try to terminate Kane’s contract, alleging he once again violated COVID-19 protocols.
Since then, rumours have been swirling around what team he might sign with or if he signs with another NHL team at all.
When asked about Kane on Jan. 11, Oilers general manager Ken Holland confirmed he has had discussions with Kane’s agent, saying, “as a manager, it’s my responsibility to investigate every situation.”
While Holland did not express how much interest the Oilers had in Kane or what his level of interest in coming to Alberta may be, he said he believes in second chances for people if they take steps to learn from their mistakes and make changes.
“Obviously Evander’s an amazing player and he’s had lots of success over the last couple of years, and whatever else has been going on is not really something that I look into much,” Connor McDavid said Jan. 12.
“Obviously there’s lots of talk going around.
“If fans don’t like it, the media doesn’t like it or whatever… I think it is what it is,” McDavid said.
“The public opinion is something that obviously matters a lot, but we’re here to try and win games and try to put together a good team on the ice and if Kenny thinks that that’s what he can do, then that’s what he can do. I think he’s got our full support in what he does.”
Over his NHL career, Kane has scored 264 goals and 506 points in 769 regular-season games. His sudden change of status as a now free agent comes as the Oilers seek to find their footing again in the second half of the season. The team started the year as one of the best in the NHL but have gone 2-9-2 since Dec. 1.
The Sharks’ move to terminate Kane’s contract, something the NHL Players’ Association has said it plans to challenge by filing a grievance, came after the team alleged the 30-year-old violated COVID-19 protocols while a member of the club’s farm team in the American Hockey League.
Kane was playing in the AHL ever since he served a 21-game suspension for a violation involving a fake COVID-19 vaccination card. In recent months Kane has faced allegations of sexual and physical abuse levelled at him by his estranged wife, who also accused him of betting on hockey games he was playing in.
An NHL investigation found no evidence to support the allegations. Kane has denied the allegations made by his estranged wife and apologized for using a fake vaccine card.
When asked on Jan. 12 about how Kane may impact the team given the controversies that have surfaced during his career, Oilers head coach Dave Tippett said it’s too early to look at that.
“If you think he can help your team, you analyze it and see if he can help your team, but we’re not that far yet, so I’m not jumping into that.
“If he ends up in Edmonton, then you can ask me all those questions.”
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