Evander Kane says crowd’s boos ‘had no bearing’ on his game

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This article was published 10/01/2016 (3557 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The day before the Buffalo Sabres were to take on the Jets, Evander Kane called his return to Winnipeg “just another game.”

In some ways it was. Kane finished the Sunday matinee at the MTS Centre much like he has all season: with little mark on the final result — a 4-2 Sabres’ win — chipping in an assist on a late empty-net goal in 21:32 of ice time.

It was just his 14th point (eight goals, six assists) in 32 games — a scoring pace Kane admitted was below his own expectations and those of the Sabres, who traded for him and rearguard Zach Bogosian last February.

As much as the game took on a number of similarities from his time with the Jets — a number of scoring chances went unfulfilled from the man who calls himself “The Natural” — it was clear in more ways this one was different. That became evident before the first puck was dropped.

When Kane took the ice for the pre-game skate, he was welcomed with an onslaught of boos from the same fans who cheered him 11 months ago. The jeers turned to cheers seconds later as Kane stepped on a puck at the blue-line and went tumbling to the ice.

“It was all part of the plan,” Kane joked after the game, confirming the sense of humour he often flashed while in Winnipeg was still intact. “I was looking to get some cheers out of the crowd and get them behind me.”

It was Kane, however, who proved to be the punchline for the thousands in attendance. Every time he touched the puck he was booed. Whether he was on the ice or not, it wasn’t long before a chant surfaced, the first one coming less than three minutes into the game as the Jets faithful began with the old standard “Kane, you suck” number. Twice he sparked mighty cheers: first when he was lifted off his feet by a hip-check from Dustin Byfuglien in the second period and again a period later when Tyler Myers hit him with a hard check.

“I didn’t know what to expect, it really had no bearing on what I thought or how I played,” said Kane, before echoing much of what he said in the days leading up to the game. “I didn’t really have a reaction to it, so it was another hockey game and I’m happy we were able to get the win.”

The same couldn’t be said down the hall, where the dejected Jets were left reeling from the loss to a club that entered the game losers of six straight and without a win in Winnipeg since 1993. Any questions surrounding their former teammate were met with either a quick, dismissive response, or, as was the case with forward Blake Wheeler, completely ignored.

“I thought we handled it fine; there wasn’t much on the ice,” said coach Paul Maurice.

Surrounded one last time by reporters, Kane took a page from the same closed book when asked if he was glad the hype around his return was finally behind him.

“I’m glad we got these two points and I’m glad we got off this slide,” he said. “We needed to come out with some energy and get two points, get off this train we were on and get back on the winning side of things. I thought we did a great job tonight, and now we have a tough game (Tuesday) in Minnesota.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton