Patrick Kane Is Starting to Heat Up as Blackhawks Win Fourth Straight

Kane is starting to heat up as Hawks win fourth straight originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

Patrick Kane is one of the greatest players of all-time and a future first-ballot Hall of Famer. His trophy closet is loaded, whether it's with individual awards or team.

And yet there's no satisfaction with him. He's hungry for more and holds himself to a high standard. It's why, on Wednesday, Kane was self-critical of his game this season.

"It’s been frustrating," Kane said. "Probably been probably one of the more frustrating years for me personally so far."

It was raw. It was honest. It was truthful. The goal production simply hasn't been there, and that's not something he's used to.

And, for what it's worth, Kane also refused to use his undisclosed injury as an excuse.

"I felt like there’s been numerous times where I could’ve cashed in and scored goals, and I’ve had chances to do so," Kane said. "It’s frustrating when you feel that’s a strong part of your game and it’s not a part that’s working for you."

Well, since those comments, the puck luck is slowly starting to turn. 

After going 13 straight without finding the back of the net, Kane has scored in back-to-back contests and extended his point streak to a season-long seven games. He had only seven goals in his first 32.

Heck, he could've had another one in Thursday's 3-2 overtime victory against Montreal but he hit the crossbar. Only David Pastrnak (9) has hit more iron this season than Kane (8), which shows you the kind of tough luck he's had.

"I still hit a post last game, so it’d be nice to see those go post and in or at least get a chance to hit the net or something there," Kane said. "But it is what it is and hopefully just get the confidence going here and try to get a little streak going I think will help the team."

This is more like the "Showtime" Chicago is used to seeing, although he's certainly been impacting games in other ways. He leads the team with 25 assists — 16 of which have been primary — and is still averaging a point-per-game.

"That’s vintage Patrick Kane," interim head coach Derek King said following a 3-0 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday. "What I’ve watched over years of watching him play and then even just being a part of him now, this is what he does. He hangs around, hangs around, and when he strikes, he strikes. It was nice to see him keep the point streak going, get the goals, the power play. He was good tonight."

Since the calendar flipped to 2022, Kane has registered 58 shot attempts and 29 shots on goal over the last eight games. Clearly, he's the driving force of an offense that's trying to find more consistency.

While there's still a big hill to climb in the standings, Kane is starting to heat up for a Blackhawks team that's now won four in a row, matching a season-high.

"When Kaner gets going the way he’s going, he’s a special player," Riley Stillman said. "He’s unbelievable. When he gets hot, there’s no way to stop him. If he can keep going the way he’s going, we can be a dangerous team in the second half."

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