Kane passed Mike Modano on Thursday night by recording his 1,375th point with an assist in the Detroit Red Wings’ game against the Washington Capitals. It came a couple of months after turning 37, while Modano was 40 when he scored a goal to record point 1,374.
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“When you think of USA Hockey, he’s one of the first players that comes to mind, if not the first,” said fellow American Jack Eichel. “He is a great representation of USA Hockey and us Americans, something that many who came after him had to strive to be, including myself.”
Kane has been one of the faces of American hockey since Chicago selected him with the first pick in the 2007 draft. He helped the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup three times between 2010 and 2015 as a co-star of one of the most successful streaks since the league’s salary cap era began in 2005.
American-born defender Charlie McAvoy recalled seeing Kane on those long runs “do things that at the time people weren’t doing.”
“His type of player transcends now, where back then there was no one who really did that,” said American-born defender Charlie McAvoy. “He changed the game of hockey. He’s an absolute legend. And it’s great that he’s an American.”
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Earlier this month, Kane became the 50th player and fifth American to score 500 goals, following Keith Tkachuk, Jeremy Roenick and Joe Mullen. Brett Hull, a dual citizen who was born in Canada and played internationally for the United States, scored 741 goals and 1,391 points.
“He’s on his way to becoming the greatest American player of all time,” said countryman Jack Hughes.
Kane won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 2007-08, the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 2013 and the Hart Trophy as regular-season MVP in 2015-16, when he also led the league in scoring.
“Such an iconic player, he just played with so much passion,” said Tage Thompson, who is participating in the United States Olympics for the first time this year. “Very enthusiastic, I loved scoring goals, I loved making plays.”
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Kane’s skilled hands more than made up for the fact that he was smaller, at 5-foot-10 and less than 180 pounds.
“I might have the best highlight video of all time,” Hughes said. “As a kid, you watch all his videos and stuff, and you’re like, that’s the guy you want to be just because of how skilled he is.”
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl