Evening ramble: about the Mercenary

I’ve been reading the reactions to the Red Wings’ signing of Patrick Kane on social media (generally something I don’t recommend, but it was a weird day), and…

I get it. Patrick Kane was more than a long-time Wing-killer and agitant in Chicago. He’s got an off-ice “history,” to put things delicately, and the so-called “character issues” have long-time Wings fans perturbed about the karmic value of this particular signing.

Put indelicately, let’s be honest regarding the hockey part of the equation: Patrick Kane is, at this point in his career, a 35-year-old hired gun–a mercenary of sorts–and this is a marriage of convenience for both parties.

If Kane’s resurfaced hip holds up (which is a BIG “IF” at this point), and his chemistry with Alex DeBrincat holds true, then this is a no-brainer.

If something goes amiss, physically or otherwise, this is not the Toronto Maple Leafs we’re talking about. The stakes here in Detroit are about making the playoffs and extending the season, not necessarily contending for the Stanley Cup.

Realistically, from a hockey perspective here, if Kane finds some sort of suitable middle ground, in the top-six, and the Wings are in the playoff mix down the stretch, all is well…

And both parties can decide whether this “dry run” for what may be a year-from-now Cup run for Kane (there’s no reason to suggest this will be his last stop if he succeeds here) continues.

And, getting back to the heart of the matter: a 35-year-old on a one-year contract is a lot like the Todd Bertuzzi who the Red Wings acquired from Florida long ago and far away.

At that time, Todd had some on-ice baggage of a significant kind, and some off-ice issues as well.

At that time, Todd Bertuzzi was the mercenary. He was the end of the karmic world, a player too distasteful to cheer for.

But we all cheered for him, if only reluctantly, at first. We all got to know him, if only reluctantly, at first.

And we found out that, over the years, he had grown and matured into a different person. It’s not that his past “went away,” but he paid his penance, he carried his guilt, and he grew up.

The Patrick Kane that committed a couple of dumb off-ice acts as a very young man is not as young anymore.

The Patrick Kane that was involved with the Blackhawks’ Kyle Beach situation has had to own that.

And the Patrick Kane that we all grew to loathe and dislike as a Blackhawk is not a Blackhawk any more.

For the rest of this season (most likely), he’s a Detroit Red Wing, and that means that this man with his own reasons and motivations for joining the organization is our problem.

His past doesn’t disappear for a minute. His on-ice status as a widely-disliked villain doesn’t disappear with the first goal that he scores and/or facilitates.

But he’s a member of the Red Wings now, and it’s up to us to be better people, to get to know the 35-year-old Patrick Kane who’s trying to extend his career here, and to deal with it and deal with him (and his literal and karmic baggage) for the rest of the season.

We will probably learn to tolerate him, and we may even grow to like the player and person that he has become.

Or not. In any case, the oldest hockey adage is that it’s about the crest on the front of the jersey over the number on the back.

Even when that’s a famous #88, it’s about the team first, and the individual second, and this Patrick Kane guy makes the Red Wings a better team.

For now.