A few days ago, another hockey website out there suggested that the Buffalo Sabres should sign Patrick Kane, who remains an unrestricted free agent. For a myriad reasons, the Sabres should absolutely not do that – as evidenced by the number of Die By The Blade readers who posted vehement “No!” GIFs in this week’s open thread in response to the idea.
Just because the Sabres have the cap space to bring in a guy like Kane, that doesn’t mean they should. Just because he’s from Buffalo, doesn’t mean he’d be a good fit. Yes, his numbers as of a few years ago were good. But the Sabres have plenty of other talent in their ranks – and younger talent, too – that seems to be faring just fine on its own without the likes of a player like Kane.
Of course, there’s also the key point that Kane could be out until December, by which time he’ll have turned 35, and it simply doesn’t seem worth it at that point. If the argument is to bring in Kane to fill the gap left by an injured Jack Quinn, well, that argument lacks sense if Kane is also going to be out just as long.
If you’re after leadership or a veteran presence, can I introduce you to Kyle Okposo? Okposo has very much proven himself to be a leader on and off the ice. He clearly understands the ethics the Sabres claim to stand for – hard work, dedication, grinding it out through the good and bad times, and above all, wanting to be here.
Kane isn’t the player he once was on the ice, and I have a hard time seeing where he’d fit in on the Sabres or how he’d fit in without taking a spot away from someone else who is just as, if not more, deserving. He also comes with off-ice baggage from when he was younger, and it’s just… not worth it.
In addition: the Sabres should have other priorities right now. Offensive depth is not an issue. How about more depth on defense? How about another goalie?
Patrick Kane is the last thing the Sabres need at this point. It’s a hard pass for me.