Kane surpassed Modano for the top spot among US-born players on Thursday night
There have been a lot of great American-born NHL players over the years, but only one man can claim to have scored more points than any other. As of Thursday night, that man is Detroit Red Wings forward Patrick Kane.
The Buffalo native notched point No. 1,374 to tie Minnesota North Stars/Dallas Stars great Mike Modano (who wrapped up his career with the Red Wings) earlier this week against the Los Angeles Kings.
Then, on Thursday, he went into the top spot alone thanks to an assist midway through the second period against the Washington Capitals.
What a moment.
Unfortunately, the Red Wings lost this one in a shootout, but obviously, Kane hitting such an incredible milestone is the story.
The bulk of those points came in Kane’s 16 years with the Chicago Blackhawks, who drafted him in 2007 with the first overall pick. He went on to lead them to three Stanley Cups in 2010, 2013, and 2015.
From there, he spent half a season with the New York Rangers, and is now in his third season in Detroit, where he currently has 32 points on the year.
Kane is now the man to beat (though oddly enough, Brett Hull, who is Canadian-American but born in Canada, has a 16-point lead over Kane), but is there anyone who could ever top that mark?
There are no current players in the top 10, but there’s one who most certainly can, and likely will given his pace, catch Kane, and that’s Auston Matthews.
The 28-year-old Toronto Maple Leafs captain is nine years younger than Kane and has already amassed a whopping 772 points (437G, 325A) in 10 seasons.
Kane hit his total in his 19th season, though, unlike Matthews, he missed part of one season due to the 2012-13 partial season lockout.
Matthews is on pace to pass Kane, but he’ll need some things to go his way. Obviously, he’ll need to stay healthy, but he’ll also need a strong supporting cast around him to help pump up those numbers.
He has had that in the past, but right now, the Maple Leafs are last in the Atlantic Division.
We’ll see in the years to come, but congratulations to Patrick Kane.
He’s going to be the top dog for a long time.
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