The bulk of Patrick Kane’s goals came when he was one of the league’s top players with the Chicago Blackhawks, but that didn’t make hitting the 500-career milestone any less special on Thursday night for the Detroit Red Wings. Kane scored his second of the game and 500th of his career into an empty net in the Wings’ 5-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks, and Kane couldn’t have been happier to finally hit the milestone, according to NHL.com’s Dave Hogg.
“I’m not usually on the ice when the net is empty,” Kane said. “It was nice to get that opportunity, and then hear the crowd erupt a little when I got on the ice was pretty cool. And then obviously getting the puck right away and having a chance to put it in the net for 500 was a great feeling.”
It has been a bit of a disappointing season on the injury front for Kane, as he missed nearly a third of the games thus far. However, when he does play, he has been an integral part of the Red Wings’ lineup, recording 26 points in 30 games. The American star has been just under a point-per-game for Detroit over his three seasons, and has been a key part of Detroit’s rise to one of the top contenders in the Atlantic Division.
Kane is now in third on the all-time points lead for American-born skaters, just five points behind Mike Modano with 1369 in 1322 games. With just 22 points remaining to tie Brett Hull for the lead, a healthy Patrick Kane for the remainder of the season could take his place at the top by season’s end.
The post Patrick Kane’s immediate reaction to scoring 500 goals appeared first on ClutchPoints.
