Evander Kane is at the point in his career where the question is no longer whether he can still play, but whether a team is willing to bet on what he can still bring. After a full season with the Vancouver Canucks, the results were decent without ever quite matching the expectations that came with the hometown fit.
That’s what makes the idea of a professional tryout so interesting. A PTO gives a team a way to take another look without making a full commitment, and that seems like the lane Kane could be heading into next.
The numbers from Vancouver were respectable. Kane, who turns 35 in August, finished with 13 goals and 31 points in 71 games, good for sixth on the Canucks in scoring.
He also stayed involved physically, piling up 92 penalty minutes, firing 171 shots on goal, and logging meaningful 5-on-5 minutes. He didn’t vanish.
He just didn’t deliver the kind of impact that would silence any doubts.
Still, the player hasn’t disappeared. Kane was a legitimate NHL contributor in the past, and the appeal is obvious: size, enough skating ability, edge, and experience. He’s also only a couple years removed from a strong 24-goal season with Edmonton, which is the kind of reminder that keeps teams interested.
That’s why a team like the Winnipeg Jets could make sense. If Winnipeg is looking for depth, energy, veteran leadership, and secondary scoring, Kane fits the profile of a low-risk, high-upside swing.
The Jets aren’t in rebuild mode. They’re trying to add players who can help without tying them down long term.
The biggest issue is role acceptance. If Kane is willing to settle into a smaller job, there’s a path to more useful minutes and fewer demands. In that kind of setup, he wouldn’t be asked to carry the load - just to fill it.
And if he looks motivated enough, that could be enough to get him another chance.
In Other News...
Canucks Prospects Got A Harsh World Juniors Reality Check
The World Junior Summer Showcase wrapped up in Windsor with a reminder of how thin the margin can be for young players trying to separate themselves. Canada fell 7-2 to the United States at the WFCU Centre, and for the Canucks side of the roster, Braeden Cootes and Caleb Malhotra both finished without a point in the finale as the tournament closed with plenty of evaluation still to do.
For Vancouver, the bigger takeaway may have been the level of competition more than the score itself. American prospect Rogowski lit up the event with three goals, while the showcase also offered a closer look at where the Canucks prospects fit in against elite peers, from their positions to the way they handled the game flow. It was a harsh final snapshot, and the kind that can linger as camp decisions and future roster questions start to come into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Braeden Cootes Is Forcing A Canucks Lineup Debate Already
Braeden Cootes has already done enough in his first year in the organization to make Vancouver think about a decision it probably hoped to put off. The 15th overall pick in the 2025 draft has looked strong in both the NHL and the WHL, and the Canucks now have to weigh how aggressively they want to handle his development heading into the 2026-27 season.
There is no simple answer on the roster side, either. Vancouver can keep Cootes in the NHL or send him to its AHL affiliate, and if he stays up, he is the kind of player who starts pushing for a meaningful role rather than merely filling out the bottom of the lineup. That kind of choice has ripple effects, especially for players like Aatu Rty and Filip Chytil, and it is already turning Cootes into one of the more interesting lineup questions on the Canucks' radar. [Read more 🡒]