NEWARK – As it turns out, the quest for a former Blackhawks star to win his fourth Stanley Cup only lasted a week and a half.
Because of that, it actually hurts Patrick Kane’s former team.
The Rangers lost Game 7 to the Devils 4-0 at the Prudential Center in their Stanley Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference first round series on Monday evening. It’s a quick end to what New York fans had hoped would be a strong postseason to capture the team’s first Stanley Cup in 29 years.
Instead, Kane’s stay with the Rangers in the playoffs is short, despite a goal and five assists from the nine-time All-Star during the series.
Since he didn’t have a deep run in the playoffs, the Blackhawks actually took a hit when it comes to draft capital. As part of the terms of the Kane trade back in March, the team would receive a conditional 2023 second round pick from New York that was set to become a first rounder in 2024 or 2025 if the Rangers made it to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Since that didn’t happen, the Blackhawks will keep that second round pick from the Rangers in this year’s draft. At the moment, they have four picks in the second round to go with their two in the first, along with one selection in the fourth, fifth, and seventh rounds.
A similar situation unfolded in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs when it came to the Blackhawks’ trade of Marc-Andre Fleury to the Wild at the NHL deadline. The deal had a conditional first round pick for that year’s draft that would become a second rounder if Minnesota failed to advance to the Western Conference Finals and the goalie had less than four wins in the first two rounds.
Unfortunately for the Blackhawks, they were eliminated by the Blues in the first round in six games, so it stayed a second round pick.
As for Kane, he now hits free agency after a short stay with the Rangers where he finished with five goals and 12 assists in 19 regular season games.
