Nicknamed Showtime, Kane had 1,225 points (446 goals, 779 assists) in 1,161 games for the Chicago Blackhawks from 2007-23. He won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015, plus the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year in 2007-08, the Conn Smythe Trophy as most valuable player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2012-13, and the Art Ross Trophy as NHL scoring champion and Hart Trophy as League MVP in 2015-16.
Born in Buffalo, New York, Kane was selected No. 1 by Chicago in the 2007 NHL Draft. In addition to his time with the Blackhawks and Red Wings, he played 19 games for the New York Rangers in 2022-23.
“I think he’ll be the most recognized [American player] for a long, long time,” Modano said recently. “I mean, with the Stanley Cups and the personal awards and the numbers and the longevity and everything else, I think he will go down as one of the best, obviously.
“You can debate players from different generations, but bottom line, he’s played a long time. He’s put up some great numbers. Those Blackhawk runs were phenomenal, those playoff years that they had. They had quite an amazing team. Obviously, well deserving for whatever era he played in.”
Before Modano, Housley held the record for most points by a U.S.-born player, getting his 1,064th point on March 13, 1999, to pass Joe Mullen. He finished with 1,232 points (338 goals, 894 assists) in 2002-03.
“There have been a lot of great players, believe me,” Housley said recently of Kane. “But to see what he’s done and overcome too with injuries later in his career, he takes care of himself. He trains hard. Even at this stage in his career, he’s still an asset for Detroit. He can still play at a high level.
“But I think you’d have to think that he definitely is the top player. This is my opinion, but he’s the top player in American history.”
NHL.com columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika contributed to this report
