By Conor Thompson
While it may seem like a never ending nightmare when it comes to hockey in Western New York, there are still positives when it comes to hockey here. Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks continues to show he may be the greatest American-born hockey player of all time with his list of achievements that continue to grow. Born here in Buffalo and still only at the age of 32, his play is only improving.
This year, Kane reached his 400th NHL goal and reached the 1000th NHL games played mark. A truly remarkable accomplishment at any age, but at 32 this shows how dominant Kane has been since his first NHL game in 2007. On his trophy shelf, Kane has 3 Stanley Cup rings, a Conn Symthe Trophy as Stanley Cup playoffs MVP, the Hart Trophy as league MVP, and an Art Ross Trophy as scoring leader, and you can also throw three World Junior medals, an Olympic Silver in 2010 where Kane and Sabres legend Ryan Miller stole show and a former 1st overall pick.
Growing up only 10 minutes away from KeyBank Center, Kane grew up loving the Sabres. Oddly enough, the first time Kane found the back of the net in the NHL was against Sabres Hall of Fame member Dominik Hasek in a shootout. With there still being so much time left in Patrick Kane’s career, very soon there should be no doubt who the greatest American-born hockey player is.