Patrick Kane says he was compromised by hip injury during time with Rangers
Rangers right wing Patrick Kane looks on in the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, March 14, 2023. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
GREENBURGH – Patrick Kane knows his time in a Rangers jersey likely ended after Monday's Game 7 loss to the Devils, but the future Hall-of-Famer said his time with the Blueshirts was good, and admitted he was physically compromised by the reported hip injury that has been bothering him for at least a couple of years.
“I commend the training staff, and [head athletic trainer] Jim Ramsay . . . just on getting me as ready as possible for playoffs,’’ Kane said as the Rangers cleaned out their lockers on breakup day. “I felt pretty good. Not like, 100%, but I felt pretty good. So we’ll figure everything out, talk to the doctors, and kind of see what the plan is going forward.’’
Kane didn’t rule out surgery. He said he hopes a decision on whether or not to have surgery is made within the next week or so. Something has to be done, he said.
“We're going to have to find a way to get me back to as close as 100% as possible, because . . . I look at that series, and I know if I felt a little bit better, I can help us win that series,’’ he said. “So it's a little disappointing and depressing in a way. But that's just kind of how I feel about it.’’
Statistically, Kane, 34, had one goal and five assists in the seven games, but didn’t make a huge impact on the series, other than in Game 2 when he scored a pretty goal against Vitek Vanecek and had two assists in the 5-1 win to give the Rangers a 2-0 series lead.
In the regular season, after being acquired from Chicago Feb. 28, Kane had five goals and seven assists in 19 games.
He called it “a great experience’’ to play for the Rangers and thanked Rangers GM Chris Drury for trading to get him. As an unrestricted free agent, he said he “would love to be back,’’ but he understands the Blueshirts “have . . . young guys to sign, and probably other priorities.’’
Blue notes
The other UFAs -- Vladimir Tarasenko, Niko Mikkola and Tyler Motte -- all said they would be happy to come back, though Tarasenko admitted being a free agent for the first time is “interesting.’’ . . . Defenseman K’Andre Miller, 23, and left wing Alexis Lafrenière, 21, are restricted free agents. Miller said his agent is handling all the contract negotiations. Lafrenière, the No. 1 overall pick in 2020, said he is thinking about his contract status “a little bit . . . I've worked with my agent, and obviously I want to be back here,’’ Lafrenière said. “So hopefully, we get something done. Soon.’’ . . . D Ryan Lindgren said he will not need surgery on his left shoulder… C Filip Chytil (Czechia) and RW Kaapo Kakko (Finland) said they will play for their respective countries at the World Championships, which are being held in Tampere, Finland. It begins next week.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
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