Dan Milstein just announced on DFO Insider that Evander Kane will play in the KHL this season, according to R i N K Y.
That is the kind of report that lands in the middle of a Wednesday night slate and gets NHL fans talking. Kane has been a fixture on the league's radar for 16 seasons, and this would take him out of that picture.
Here is what was relayed. R i N K Y noted that Milstein expects Kane to sign a contract soon.
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The details are thin so far. No club has been named in the report, and nothing has been said about the terms or when a signing could become official.
What is known is the résumé. Kane has played 1,001 NHL games over 16 seasons, which puts him in a group most players never reach.
He suited up for the Winnipeg Jets, Buffalo Sabres, San Jose Sharks, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks. Five franchises, plenty of storylines, and a reputation that rarely left room for a neutral opinion.
What a KHL move means for Kane's NHL legacy
A player with that much NHL mileage choosing the KHL is not a small footnote. Whatever his reasons turn out to be, the league loses a veteran with four digits worth of games on his résumé, and that is a loss on the ice no matter how you feel about him.
It also raises a question the report does not answer. Does this close the door on his NHL career, or is it simply the next stop on a longer road? Nothing in the report speaks to that, and it would be a mistake to pretend otherwise.
For now, this sits in the "expected" category. Milstein's word carries the story, and a signed contract is what turns a report into a fact.
Fans will want to see which club ends up with him and what the deal looks like. Once a signing is announced, the picture should get a lot clearer, and the first details are expected to come soon.
Should NHL fans see Evander Kane's move to the KHL as the end of his NHL career?
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