NHL Notebook: Kraken forward Jordan Eberle suffers deep cut to quad by skate blade and Patrick Kane on the verge of NHL return

Seattle Kraken forward Jordan Eberle suffered a deep cut from a skate blade during the team’s practice in Colorado on Wednesday.

“They’re doing an MRI to see if it got the tendon, so I don’t know enough yet,” Kraken general manager Ron Francis explained to the Seattle Times Geoff Baker, who first reported the news.

“It wasn’t gushing, but it was a deep cut, so they’ve taken him to a hospital…I think we dodged a bullet, but he’s going to be pretty sore tomorrow.”

Francis recalled that forward Jaden Schwartz stepped on a puck, causing him to lose his balance, resulting in the cut to Eberle’s quad muscle.

Eberle will not participate in Seattle’s Thursday night match against the Colorado Avalanche, prompting the emergency recall of centre Shane Wright. Forward Ryan Winterton was also brought up to the Kraken due to an undisclosed injury to another player.

In 13 games in the 2023-24 campaign for the Kraken, Eberle has contributed one goal and four points. Last season saw the forward have one of the best performances the hockey market has seen from Eberle, scoring 20 goals and 63 points. The last time he reached this success was during his time with the Edmonton Oilers during the 2014-15 season, when he scored 24 goals and 63 points.

Eberle was originally the 22nd overall selection in the 2008 NHL draft by the Oilers. He remained with the club for seven years, achieving his career highs of 34 goals and 76 points was during his sophomore season in 2011-12. The forward was traded to the New York Islanders in 2017 and was later drafted by the Kraken in the 2021 expansion draft.

Wright is currently the Kraken’s most promising prospect after being drafted fourth overall in 2022 and has been the Coachella Valley Firebirds’ top performer this season with four points in six games. Wright posted one goal and two points across eight games in 2022-23 with the Kraken.

Winterton joins the Firebirds for his first season since being selected in 2021 as the 67th overall pick by the Kraken. Wednesday marked his first NHL call-up after contributing five points in seven games for Coachella Valley.

The news of Eberle’s injury comes just days after the freak accident that caused former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Adam Johnson to lose his life after suffering a cut to the neck by an opponent’s skate blade during an Elite Ice Hockey League game on October 28th.

Patrick Kane might be on track to finding a new city to call home and finally making his return to the ice for the 2023-24 season.

According to The Athletics Chris Johnston, Kane and his agent Pat Brisson “have started the process of speaking directly to those in the running for his services,” and it starts with the same interview fashion used in previous years of free agency.

There’s a handful of teams in consideration for the decorated forward. Still, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli believes he may land somewhere not far off from what was predicted a month ago.

“I don’t think it strays if we’re handicapping it from afar, very far from the list we gave you a month ago where we listed the New York Rangers, Buffalo Sabres, and Detroit Red Wings,” Seravalli explained during an Episode of Daily Faceoff Live.

“Then, in the peripherals, you’ve got Dallas, Florida, and I think there’s an outside chance that the Toronto Maple Leafs take a swing.”

While overlooking all the outcomes, Seravalli notes it may not be about the money for Kane. Still, whether or not he takes a multi-year deal with a team, he believes he can polish off his career with or take a short-term contract with a team that has a true shot at winning the ultimate victory, the Stanley Cup. That may be the determiner for Kane, but as of right now, all these teams are equally in the mix.

“It’s a really interesting dynamic and we are probably less than two weeks away from Kane signing,” noted Seravalli.

Kane has 16 years of NHL experience behind him, including three commendable Stanley Cup Championships (2010, 2013, and 2015) with the Chicago Blackhawks. He has also been the recipient of the Calder Memorial Trophy (2007-08), the Conn Smythe Trophy (2012-13), the Art Ross Trophy (2015-16), Hart Memorial Trophy (2015-16), and the Ted Lindsay Award (2015-16). Kane has scored 446 goals and 1225 points throughout his career across 1161 games.

He was traded in February 2023 after 16 seasons with the Blackhawks as part of a three-team trade involving the New York Rangers and Arizona Coyotes, sending him to New York City. During his time with the Rangers, Kane scored five goals and 12 points across 19 games.

In March, Kane opened up about the trade, saying, “it’d be a good experience and get out of the comfort zone a little bit and be able to play for a different franchise, different team.” One can imagine how emotional it could have been to walk away from a team you’ve dedicated over a decade to. Still, Kane knew the Blackhawks were undergoing a massive rebuild, which may have prompted his decision.

As the next few weeks unfold, it will be interesting to see where the legendary Blackhawk ends up next.