Reports confirm that Evander Kane has become somewhat of a locker room pariah in San Jose
While it's no secret that the San Jose Sharks' dressing room is divided, with forward Evander Kane being one of the primary reasons, there is no denying that that 30-year-old was one of the Sharks' key contributors last season, which is making things very difficult on management and the coaching staff.
Kane's attitude has become a problem for the Sharks, with the power forward repeatedly showing up late to practices and games and even reportedly coming close to a physical altercation with assistant coach Rocky Thompson during a meeting over a strategic disagreement.
According to The Athletic's Kevin Kurz, one league source had stated that he feels as though Kane has nobody in the locker room to keep him honest with Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski having moved on.
"He's now not having to really answer to anyone. Nobody in that room is a fan of him. [Bob] Boughner likes him because he's a good player, because he genuinely is, but the off-ice stuff is just too much at this point," said the league source.
The Sharks bench boss explained a little bit about what the organization's thought process was during the season on May 13th, after the Sharks' season had ended.
"You want to hold everybody to the same standard, which we do, but that has to go for your best players as well. There can't be any blurred lines there," Boughner said during the Sharks' season-ending presser. "Because the situation we were in and we're fighting where every point is crucial, some guys might have gotten away with more than we'd wish for. But we were at the mercy of trying to win important games at that time of year.
"It's not a problem at all. But that's something, if you look in the mirror, and you say next year coming in, (on) day one (we've) got to make sure everybody's on the same page, they stay on the same page, and no one veers from that path. I'm a player's coach, but at the end of the day we've got to make sure that the job is being done."
Per Kurz, The Hockey News had reported this season that one agent, whose client plays for the Sharks, went so far as to say that Kane is not a team player and brings the wrong energy into the room.
"One of my clients on the Sharks just hates him, hates the negative energy he brings into the room. Only (Kane) can change that, but he may have gone too far (with the current allegations). Some guys think that they're bigger than the team, and I guess that helps drive (Kane) on a personal basis, but in the team construct, it doesn't play well at all."
The Sharks had reportedly attempted to trade Kane earlier this summer, but to no avail. Given Kane's extensive off-ice issues over the past year, it's probably safe to suggest that if the Sharks were able to find a dance partner, they'd be taking a substantial loss in any deal involving the Vancouver, BC native due to not only past issues, but also the ongoing investigation that Kane is under following his estranged wife, Anna Kane's allegations that Kane had gambled on his own games and had thrown games to win money through a bookie.
The Sharks had elected not to buy Kane out of his contract during either of the first two buy-out windows this offseason, meaning that unless GM Doug Wilson can find a trade partner or unless the gambling investigation yields any tangible evidence, resulting in the league voiding his contract, Kane will likely be a Shark when the team kicks off its 2021-22 campaign on Oct 16th.
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YESTERDAY
JUNE 6, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Mitch Marner | 3 | 1 | 4 | |
| Tomas Hertl | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jordan Staal | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Shea Theodore | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Sebastian Aho | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brayden McNabb | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Taylor Hall | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jordan Martinook | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Andrei Svechnikov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jackson Blake | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Eichel | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Seth Jarvis | - | 1 | 1 | |
| William Karlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Eric Robinson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jaccob Slavin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Logan Stankoven | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Frederik Andersen | - | - | - | |
| Rasmus Andersson | - | - | - | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | - | - | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||