Kane’s new teammates have his back
Cherry’s comments that forward is divisive met with surprise and anger
SAN JOSE >> Evander Kane, and his Sharks teammates, provided a fullthroated response to criticism from iconic Canadian broadcaster Don Cherry on “Hockey Night in Canada” last weekend.
During his weekly Coach’s Corner segment, Cherry criticized Kane for skating into the Calgary Flames end of the rink during warmups, characterizing the act as the type of behavior that alienates teammates. The Sharks acquired Kane at a bargain-basement price on Feb. 26, in
part because of the embattled forward’s reputation for causing friction with his teammates in Winnipeg and Buffalo.
“What he did was, in the warmups, he went down in the other team’s end. Why he does goofy things like that ... that’s why he ticks off his own team,” Cherry said. “There is no reason to be down in the other team’s end. We’re not even going to show it.”
According to the Sharks, Cherry got his facts wrong.
Kane insists that he was skating in the Flames’ end after the Sharks returned to the ice for the second period, not during warmups as was
as was suggested by Cherry. It’s common for players to skate in their opponent’s zone prior to the second period because teams switch ends and it’s closer to their bench.
“It was not during pregame warmups as the video would suggest. It was coming out for the second period,” Kane said. “I was just doing some practice shots without a puck toward the net, like I actually do every single game coming out for
the second.”
The commentator’s suggestion that Kane violated an unwritten hockey code by warming up in the Flames’ end got Sharks defenseman Brent Burns particularly fired up.
“Every team does that,” Burns said. “I say hi to the other teams’ guys all the time. It’s not uncommon. Watch when guys come out for the second period, they’re always going into the other team’s zone.”
Sharks alternate captain Logan Couture took issue with the insinuation that Kane had rubbed his new teammates the wrong way with his actions in Calgary. After that game, Burns, Joe Pavelski and Joel Ward were chumming it up with Kane, hugging, laughing and celebrating his four-goal night.
“Every single team does that — that’s crazy. It isn’t a problem for us,” Couture said. “If he shows up and plays the way he does, we don’t care. It’s nothing. It’s really not a story.”
Another Sharks player, Barclay Goodrow, called Cherry’s criticism of Kane “outrageous”.
At this point, one thing is clear: the Sharks are grateful that general manager Doug Wilson swung a deal at the trade deadline to bring Kane into the room. The Sharks’ season appeared to be trending downward after a fourgame trip through the Central Division resulted in a 1-2-1 record. Especially troubling was a 3-2 overtime loss to Minnesota in which the Sharks were outshot 3111 over the last two periods
and overtime.
With Joe Thornton still sidelined by a right-knee injury, the Sharks seemed to lack the firepower to reach the finish line for a playoff spot. Kane’s acquisition injected life into a dressing room that had the atmosphere of a funeral home after the loss in Minnesota.
But after going 3-0 through Western Canada, the Sharks are now 7-2 with Kane, building a three-point lead over the Anaheim Ducks for second place in the Pacific Division and a five-point cushion over the Los Angeles Kings. Kane is proving to be the offensive catalyst the Sharks needed, producing 10 points (5g, 5a) in nine games.
Kane expressed disappointment in Cherry’s comments because it fed into
the perception that he’s locker room cancer.
“A lot of times, especially in the Canadian media, they feel that they can speak so openly and loosely without getting the facts straight,” Kane said. “Maybe they don’t understand the gravity that their impressions or thoughts and ideas have on the casual fan. When you speak, especially on TV, it is important that they get their facts straight because that can cause a misunderstanding. It might not seem big to them.
“When you’re talking about a player, and the underlying tones are outrageous, talking about his character, I have a problem with that. It’s unfortunate.”
• Marc-Edouard Vlasic skated at practice Monday after missing the last 35:16 of Saturday’s game. Vlasic left the game after taking a puck to the throat area. He is expected to suit up against the New Jersey Devils at SAP Center Tuesday.
• Melker Karlsson also returned to practice after missing all but 3:17 of Saturday’s game with a lowerbody injury, the result of a blocked shot.
• Head coach Pete DeBoer said that defenseman Joakim Ryan will be sidelined for “seven to 10 days” with an upper-body injury that kept him out of the lineup Saturday.
• Joonas Donskoi, who suffered an apparent leftshoulder injury in Edmonton on March 14, skated before practice on Monday. DeBoer labeled Donskoi’s injury as a “day-to-day” ailment.