Kane extends point streak to 12 games in shootout loss

Kane extends his point streak with an early assist

DALLAS — A split-second after discussing Patrick Kane’s latest double-digit point streak, Dylan Strome offered words of wisdom.

“Don’t ask Kane about it,” Strome cautioned. “It’s bad luck.”

That presented a dilemma, because the two main topics of this story are Kane and a point streak that hit 12 games Saturday night against the Stars with a first-period assist.

Heeding Strome’s warning probably would have been wise had it involved anybody besides Kane. But here’s a truth: Whenever Kane’s streak comes to an end, it’s a lock another will start.

Kane is in the midst of his sixth point streak of 10-plus games, the second-most of any active player behind Sidney Crosby’s nine. Kane has had two streaks of 20 games or more, including a high of 26 in 2015 and 20 last season.

Streaks do matter to Kane, but the topic isn’t on his mind before games.

“It’s not like you’re thinking going into the game tonight, ‘Hey, I want to extend my point streak,’ ” Kane said. “You’re just playing the game, but when it happens, you’re like, OK, I’m at this number, let’s keep it going. Let’s keep building it.”

The only other current Hawk with a 10-game streak in his career is Jonathan Toews, who oddly enough had a point in the first 10 games of his career but hasn’t had a streak that long since. Granted, the Hawks are a young team, but even a notoriously streaky player such as Alex DeBrincat managed a high of only nine straight games last season.

“When you see a guy going on a point streak, it’s really carrying everyone else and helping everyone get in the play,” DeBrincat said. “For (Kane), he’s been on a few of these point streaks before, so it’s good for him and good for the team to get that momentum.”

Point streaks can capture the imagination of fans as excitement builds game by game. But Kane also is really good at keeping another streak to a minimum: pointless streaks.

The main reason Kane builds long scoring streaks is because he rarely goes more than few games without one.

That was a bit of an issue during his first two seasons, when he scored at a similar rate as he has since but had two of the three longest scoring droughts of his career. Kane had a five-game scoreless streak as a rookie — matching one during the 2017-18 season — and one that lasted seven games during his second season.

“After you get into the league and establish yourself, that’s one thing I’ve always wanted to do is be consistent and produce night in and night out,” Kane said. “Especially because that’s something I thought I struggled with early on in my career.

“I’d have hot streaks then cold streaks and wasn’t as consistent my first two years, maybe. After that I just really wanted to work on my consistency and be a player that can be counted on every night.”

After having a four-game pointless streak during his third season, Kane never went more than three games without a point over the next seven seasons, spanning 496 games. During the 2016-17 season — when Kane played all 82 games — he didn’t go more than two games without a point.

It’s a remarkable feat for any player, especially one who is being watched like a hawk by opponents.

“I’m put in a position to produce,” Kane said. “I play a lot of situations where I’m counted on to produce offensively, whether it’s power play or offensive-zone faceoffs or just playing with offensive guys. So when that comes, you just want to make sure you take advantage of the opportunity.”

Few players train or work as hard to improve their game as much as Kane, who at 31 isn’t showing any signs of slowing down. Andrew Shaw spent five seasons marveling at Kane’s play earlier in his career before rejoining the Hawks this season. Shaw would offer an opinion on what it’s like to see Kane go through a slump — but that’s not something he has witnessed.

“I don’t think I’ve ever really seen it,” Shaw said. “He’s rarely off the score sheet, and if he is, I know he’s going to work harder in practice and pregame skates, and he’s going to focus. That’s just the type of player he is, the type of person he is.”

To illustrate just how important Kane is to the Hawks since they last won the Stanley Cup in 2015, look at their record when he’s in the slightest bit of a scoring slump.

Kane’s longest droughts in each of the last five seasons, including the current one, are three games, two games (four times), five games, two games (three times) and three games.

The Hawks’ record in those games: 3-20-2.

As Kane goes, so go the Hawks. “He’s a top player in the league and gives the team a lot of confidence that he’s going to come through,” coach Jeremy Colliton said. “Especially when he’s playing as he is. The fun thing about him is, I’m pretty sure he’s not satisfied.”