Chicago Blackhawks: Patrick Kane earns career milestone in win

The Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Detroit Red Wings by a final score of 7-2 and that isn’t even close to being the big story of the game.

Patrick Kane scored the 400th goal of his Hall of Fame legendary career. It was a brilliant toe drag and snipe for as pretty of a goal as you would expect from him. That is a lot of goals for a guy who made a name for himself as a playmaking winger. Kane drives offense like a center in elite fashion so that has allowed him to score all of these goals in addition to his assists.

Kane is a three-time Stanley Cup Champion, a Hart Trophy Winner, an Art Ross winner, and a Conn Smythe winner. There is no doubt that he is a  highly decorated player that has won pretty much everything there is to win. Climbing the hill in terms of the all-time greats is pretty much what the rest of his career is going to be about.

Speaking of the greats, this does put him at or near the top of all the great American players who ever lived. It isn’t all about points as he hasn’t become the all-time leading American goal or point leader yet but he is certainly on his way to do that. Kane needs 161 more goals to catch Mike Modano‘s record for the most ever scored by an American in the NHL. That is certainly an achievable milestone for Kane, especially if he plays until he is 40.

Whether Patrick Kane remains a Chicago Blackhawk for the duration of his career remains to be seen. What is true is that he is one of the most successful (if not the most successful) players to ever suit up in that sweater. His career is a long way from over but it would be nice to see the Hawks (or any team) give him a chance to win that fourth cup.

It was pretty sweet that Kane got the opportunity to score this goal while wearing the Reverse Retro Blackhawks jersey. It was also against the Detroit Red Wings who are the century-long rival of the Chicago Blackhawks. Kane’s nickname has been Showtime for a long time so it is even more fitting that this huge goal came on national television.

17 of his 400 goals have come against the Detroit Red Wings. His 29 against the Dallas Stars are the most against any individual opponent. One thing that people have always said about Kane is that he is consistent. Well, he now has 200 goals scored at home and 200 scored on the road. It doesn’t matter where the Hawks are, Kane will be awesome.

As of right now, there is no better choice for the NHL’s Hart Trophy as league MVP than Patrick Kane. Of course, Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, and Leon Draisaitl amongst others deserve the consideration as well but nobody is doing more with less than Kane. He also added two assists in this game so he is up to 34 points which are tied for second in the NHL with Draisaitl. They only trail McDavid (40 points).

Kane and the Blackhawks have been on a nice run. They are now 12-7-4 which is right there for a playoff berth in the Central Division. They have a long way to go but they are certainly looking good. They finally have a few days to rest for the first time in a while as their next game isn’t until Thursday.

They might have the toughest part of the season ahead after those days off however as they play the Tampa Bay Lightning three times in four days. That Lightning team made us all think the Hawks were the worst team in the league early in the season so this will be tough.