We wrote about Evander Kane’s comments to The Hockey News on how he requested a trade out of Winnipeg every offseason he was with the team. The comments were honest, but brash. Fans in Winnipeg weren’t expected to be happy with them, and Kane’s former Jets teammates have responded directly to them.
Winnipeg Jets captain Andrew Ladd told the Winnipeg Free Press he’s having a great time in Winnipeg, and that Kane should move on.
“You talk to any guy in this room. We’re an open group. If we have any issues, I think we take care of it as a group. We don’t have any issues. Like I said, we’re having a great time in here and we’ve moved on and maybe he should, too.”
“Does it (his comments) surprise me? No, I think he’s an emotional kid. No, I guess it doesn’t.”
Blake Wheeler said he had a lot more things to worry about than Kane’s comments.
“There’s not a whole lot that would surprise me. But I’m not spending much of my day thinking about that. I’ve got a lot of bigger things to worry about, most notably the guys sitting in this room and our opponent tonight.
Neither took any direct shots at Kane, but they did point out the Jets are having no issues without him and have a tight group. Winnipeg is off to a solid 5-2-1 start and have played extremely well with a +7 goal differential. Kane’s Buffalo Sabres are not off to a hot start, losing four of their first six games. It’s a small sample size, but it’s pretty clear which team is better geared for success this season, although the Sabres are in fine shape going forward.
Kane’s also not going to be available for the club for at least the next month, as he’s going to miss the next 4-6 weeks with an MCL injury.
