Ex-Canuck Evander Kane Heads to Russia’s KHL

Evander Kane is taking his career overseas.

The veteran winger’s agent, Dan Milstein of Gold Star Hockey, confirmed the move Wednesday on DFO Insider with David Pagnotta.

“We had a couple of things here in North America, but in the end, Evander decided to take his talents to Russia,” Milstein said.

“We’re very close to signing a deal with a KHL team. Over the next couple of days or so, we will make an announcement.”

The 34-year-old forward became an unrestricted free agent after finishing the 2025-26 NHL season with the Vancouver Canucks.

That season was the worst of his career.

Kane posted 13 goals and 18 assists in 71 games for a Canucks team that finished dead last in the league.

The Athletic gave him a rare “F” grade for his performance.

No NHL team offered Kane a professional tryout contract for training camp this fall.

That silence from the league told its own story.

Kane’s NHL career ends with 339 goals and 309 assists for 648 points in 1,001 regular-season games.

He also recorded 55 points in 97 playoff appearances.

The Vancouver, BC native was selected fourth overall by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 2009 NHL Draft.

He immediately jumped to the NHL, scoring 14 goals and 26 points in 66 games as a rookie, finishing ninth in Calder Trophy voting.

Kane spent one more season with the Thrashers and stayed with the franchise when it relocated to become the second iteration of the Winnipeg Jets.

His first season in Winnipeg is widely considered his career best.

He finished second on the team in scoring behind Blake Wheeler, recording 30 goals and 57 points in 74 games with a plus-11 rating.

A few weeks before the 2012-13 season was supposed to start, the Jets signed Kane to a six-year, $31.5 million extension worth a $5.25 million annual average.

Then things began to unravel.

Toward the end of the 2013-14 campaign, Kane was accused of assault in his hometown and was subsequently sued for financial damages.

After that incident, head coach Paul Maurice healthy-scratched Kane multiple times.

The final straw came in February of the 2014-15 season when Kane was scratched after what the team called an “incident with his teammates.”

A little over a week later, Winnipeg traded Kane to the Buffalo Sabres in a blockbuster deal.

The Jets sent Kane, Zach Bogosian, and Jason Kasdorf to Buffalo for Tyler Myers, Drew Stafford, Joel Armia, Brendan Lemieux, and a conditional 2015 first-round pick that became Jack Roslovic.

In Buffalo, Kane rebounded with three consecutive 20-goal seasons.

But the Sabres were non-competitive during that era.

At the 2018 trade deadline, they shipped Kane to the San Jose Sharks.

Instead of testing unrestricted free agency, Kane signed a seven-year, $49 million extension with the Sharks in May 2018, carrying a $7 million annual average.

His remaining time in San Jose drew further controversy.

He had a few quality years with the Sharks, particularly the 2018-19 season, but off-ice issues continued to follow him.

The Sharks eventually bought out the remainder of his contract in 2022.

Kane then signed with the Edmonton Oilers.

He helped the Oilers reach consecutive Stanley Cup Finals in 2024 and 2025.

In the summer of 2025, the Oilers traded Kane to the Vancouver Canucks along with a fourth-round pick.

The Canucks sent back nothing but salary cap relief — they took on Kane’s contract without any salary retention.

That trade was widely criticized at the time.

The fourth-round pick the Canucks sent to Edmonton was the same pick the Oilers had previously traded to Vancouver for Vasily Podkolzin.

Optics-wise, it looked like the Canucks had essentially traded Podkolzin for Kane.

Podkolzin has thrived in Edmonton since the deal.

Kane, by contrast, struggled badly in Vancouver.

When the Canucks’ season went sideways, there was hope the team could recoup a draft pick for Kane at the trade deadline.

That deadline came and went with Kane still on the roster.

His poor play had destroyed his trade value.

Now Kane is headed to Russia.