After a slow start to the year, Patrick Kane has been on a heater for the better part of the second half of the season, but his scoring outburst hasn't been enough to propel the Detroit Red Wings in the standings.
Over the past ten games, the Red Wings have secured an Atlantic Division-worst 2-8-0 record. During that span, Kane has ripped off four goals and 14 points. Since Christmas, Kane has recorded 13 goals and 35 points through 30 games.
In the midst of this oh-so-common downward spiral we've grown far too accustomed to in the month of March, Red Wings head coach Todd McLellan continues to seek the right buttons to pull the yoke back in an attempt to save Detroit's season. But with just ten games remaining and a cluster of teams vying for the final wild-card spot in the East, time isn't on Detroit's side.
A couple of weeks ago, McLellan voiced his opinion on Detroit's effort following the Four Nations Face-Off tournament, explicitly calling out captain Dylan Larkin. Larkin welcomed the criticism, admitting he'd have criticized himself if his head coach had refused. Since the break, Larkin has recorded five goals and 12 points over 14 games.
That doesn't seem all that bad, but there was an abysmal, pointless four-game stretch during that span. During that same timeframe, fellow first liner Lucas Raymond suffered a five-game pointless streak leaving Detroit to look toward Kane, Alex DeBrincat, and Marco Kasper to carry the bread, but you won't win many NHL games when you rely on just one line to shoulder the load. Since the break, Raymond has recorded three goals and 11 points in 14 games.
"We have to be honest with each other," McLellan said after Saturday's game at T-Mobile Arena. "We were again tonight between periods. We talk about wanting to be in the playoffs, but we’re not sure we always want to be in shooting lanes. We’re not sure we want to do some things. And I’m not saying everybody. We’re just picking and choosing. Do we really want to do it around the net? Do we really want to get hit by a puck? Do we want to do the board work when it’s hard? If the answer is yes to that, from everybody, then we have a chance. If the answer is yet to those questions from 85% of the players, we don’t. It’s as simple as that. We have to keep asking those questions and working on them."
"There are some that seem to get hit by a puck a lot," he said. "Then there’s others that just kind of find their way out of it. That’s our job to get them in the lanes and if they’re not willing to get there, then we have to look at who we are. But it’s more than that. It’s not just shooting lanes, it’s net play, it’s board work, it’s line changes. It’s reading and reacting to situations. Some are still gaining experience, some are making the same mistakes over and over, and that’s a little alarming."
The Detroit Red Wings need to prioritize extending Patrick Kane
Kane, 36, continues to prove he's worth a top-six spot on the Detroit Red Wings. The veteran winger is so crafty, creative, and downright dangerous in the offensive zone, particularly on the power play. In fact, his 11 power play markers on the season are the fourth most he's tallied in a year and the most since 2015-16 when he notched 17.
With how difficult it's been for Yzerman to acquire a top-flight scoring forward in free agency, retaining a player like Kane to fill a depth scoring role needs to be a priority. Of course, this won't solve Detroit's issues. If Detroit has any hope of actually turning things around, Yzerman still needs to find a way to land a first-line forward in free agency or via trade this summer. Look toward someone like Mitch Marner if he somehow slips through the cracks in Toronto.
The Detroit Red Wings will need to rely on Kane's comfort and familiarity of playing with good friend Alex DeBrincat and the plan Yzerman will continue to pitch, showing slow but steady growth within the organization to try and lure Kane back for another year.
Kane, a three-time Stanley Cup Champion, understands winning a fourth cup in Detroit appears very unlikely, but sometimes playing in a place that makes your family happy while being a major part of a franchise's eventual turnaround can be satisfying enough to make a player want to stay. A return to Chicago to help mentor Connor Bedard may also be appealing to Kane. Only time will tell.
Overall, Kane has 18 goals and 49 points this year.