At the start of the 2025-26 Detroit Red Wings season, some thought Patrick Kane didn't have what it takes as a consistent NHL player.
In some ways, these naysayers were vindicated. Kane doesn't look like the player he once was during his Hart Trophy-winning years. Then again, why should he? At 37 years of age, it's hard for the vast majority of NHLers to put up even serviceable numbers.
Fortunately, Patrick Kane isn't among the vast majority of NHLers.
In 67 games with the Red Wings, Kane seemed to turn back the clock, putting up 57 points in the process. He ended the season fifth in team scoring behind just Moritz Seider, Lucas Raymond, Dylan Larkin and leading scorer Alex DeBrincat. Part of this can be attributed to his chemistry with DeBrincat. Others can be attributed to his outstanding offensive talent, which still shows traces of that lethality he was known for in the past.
While, overall, Kane's season was a success, there are still some concerns that will need to be addressed in the future for both Kane and the Red Wings.
Kane's defense not up to par
There's an elephant in the room that needs to be addressed. Kane's offensive numbers look good, but, unfortunately, his defense is far from ideal. He's never been a defensively stalwart player, but, at his age, he's more of a defensive liability than ever before. Defensive play collapses around him. He's unable to keep up at the pace of the rest of the team.
This, in turn, forces players like Moritz Seider to continue to bear a burden he shouldn't. To make matters worse, Kane isn't as fast as he used to be. He's becoming a liability on the power play and actively damaging the team's defensive metrics.
That said, even with Kane's poor defense, his offense is still great -- so great, in fact, that he was one of the top-five scorers on the Red Wings. Is this due to Kane's ability as a prolific scorer, or is it because the Red Wings are lacking severely on offensive depth?
Red Wings need more offensive threats than Kane
The good news is that there's mutual interest in Kane returning to the Red Wings. The bad news is that, if the Red Wings have to rely on a 37-year-old for scoring, they're in a much bigger hole than people realize. Kane can only do so much at this age. It's unfair to ask more out of him at this point in his career.
To put it simply, the Red Wings need more scoring threats. They need to figure out how to spread out their offense and give Kane a bit of a break on some of his shifts. The Red Wings could even elect to give him an entire line to himself if they so choose.
But it's clear that the issues the Red Wings face have less to do with Kane and more to do with the lack of offensive depth.
Final Grade: B
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