SportsHockeyOilers

Edmonton Oilers players rave about Kane's impact since returning to lineup

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
|
Apr 30 2025, 6:45 pm
Edmonton Oilers players rave about Kane's impact since returning to lineup
Perry Nelson/Imagn Images

Evander Kane is back and better than anybody could have imagined for the Edmonton Oilers.

The 33-year-old was forced to miss the entire 2024-25 campaign due to abdominal surgery in September. After sitting out the opening game of the playoffs versus the LA Kings, he was deemed ready to go for Game 2 and has quickly made an impact.

Though the Oilers lost in Kane’s return and fell into a 2-0 series hole, they’ve since responded with three-straight wins. The gritty veteran forward has played a huge part in that. Game 3 saw him score a massive goal to tie things up late in the third in an outing the Oilers wound up winning 7-4.

“I’m not surprised at all, he’s a fantastic athlete,” Calvin Pickard said of Kane’s impact. “He’s great. He was making a home in the crease tonight. A couple big goals, obviously the goal in Game 3, who knows what would have happened if that one didn’t go in. Then tonight after they score, to get that one back, he’s been fantastic and a huge addition.”

As Pickard mentioned, Kane came up with another massive goal last night, opening the scoring for the Oilers mere minutes after the Kings had gone up 1-0.

“He’s one in a million, man. It’s unbelievable,” Connor Brown said of Kane after Game 3. “What he’s able to do when the lights are on. Kaner is incredible … I missed a full season, and it took me about 60 games to score, it took him six periods.”

It was never just the offence the Oilers missed from Kane, either. He brings a power forward type element that goes unmatched on this roster, as he has zero issue throwing his weight around. Even after returning from such a lengthy time off, he’s continued to provide that physicality with 17 hits through the four games he’s played.

“It’s hard to do,” Draisaitl said of Kane returning so late into the season. “It’s nice to have him back. He brings an asset to our lineup that we don’t have a lot of. He’s a guy that doesn’t overthink these big moments. He wants to score and he wants to play. Very happy to have him back.”

Kane and the Oilers will be back in action on Thursday, where they will look to eliminate the Kings for the fourth-straight year.

ADVERTISEMENT