All this conjecture about what other teams would give up is fruitless. Any trade will only be consummated by SJ brass who - aside of the clear EK off-ice distractions - see nothing less than
owning an asset. You might think he's a distressed asset so you can justify doing the Sharks a 'favour', but he's pretty clearly not if you take off the blinkers to look at what he brings.
He'll be back on the ice in 21 games and was our best forward last year (which people seem to keep overlooking). Would Doug Wilson like a doves-singing-and-lambs-leaping-type locker of room harmony? Maybe? But it doesn't discount his value as a hockey player. I know plenty of unlikeable people, but many of them are still damn good at their jobs.
Let's think it through:
* Sharks aren't retaining 50% on Kane, and definitely not for 4 years - just isn't happening. $14m against the cap because your team feels 'edgy' about taking his salary on? Give your heads a wobble. Besides, there is absolutely no indication the team feels it
has to trade him. Kicking the tyres doesn't count - it's what any GM would do.
* This Sharks team already lacks proven scorers. Kane is the
24th highest forward for goals scored in the NHL in the last 3 (and a handful of games this one!) years. That's ahead of Gaudreau, Crosby, Tkachuk, Huberdeau, Laine and a fair few other names. This isn't Ondrej Kase here. The guy has over 500 NHL points and, even at a clip of about 20 per season for the remainder of his contract, will put him in the top 150 or so all time goalscorers in NHL history.
* Kane is a few months into his 30s. We're not looking at a guy anything beyond his prime
right now, which is what Wilson would be trading as an asset. Speculating what he's worth against his contract in 3 years is largely irrelevant given how many other variables move - right now, he's very much worth $7m per and that's hard to say in San Jose given the number of bone-rattling contracts we have on the books.
You might not like Kane. But this is what Sharks brass see. Hurt feelings won't negate those circumstances which is why he's not going to go on the cheap.
