NHL EDGE stats behind Kane's points record among U.S.-born players

NHL.com's fantasy staff continues to cover the latest trends and storylines in the League through the lens of NHL EDGE puck and player tracker stats. Today, we identify the key advanced metrics surrounding Detroit Red Wings forward Patrick Kane.

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Patrick Kane has passed Mike Modano for the most points among U.S.-born players (1,375) and also reached the 500-goal mark earlier this month, and the Detroit Red Wings veteran is still covering key advanced stats categories at 37 years old.

Kane became the fifth player born in the United States to score 500 goals in the NHL, joining Modano (561), Keith Tkachuk (538), Jeremy Roenick (513) and Joe Mullen (502). A three-time Stanley Cup champion with the Chicago Blackhawks (2010, 2013, 2015), Kane has remained productive since joining the Red Wings in 2023-24 with 138 points (49 goals, 89 assists) in 162 games over the past three seasons combined.

Kane’s NHL trophy case also includes the Hart (most valuable player in regular season) and Art Ross (regular-season points leader) in 2016, Conn Smythe (most valuable player in Stanley Cup Playoffs) in 2013 and Calder (rookie of the year) in 2008.

Kane, who has had two injury absences this season (limited to 40 of Detroit’s 55 games), returned to the lineup Dec. 28 and has been an important part of the Red Wings’ resurgence when healthy. Detroit, in the midst of the NHL’s second-longest postseason drought (nine seasons; behind Buffalo Sabres’ 14 seasons), ranks sixth in the NHL in points percentage (.636) and is contending for the Atlantic Division title.

The Red Wings are 23-11-6 with Kane in the lineup this season, and, since their coaching change last season (hired Todd McLellan; his debut was Dec. 27, 2024), Detroit is sixth in standings points (126; 58-35-10).

Here are three underlying metrics storylines behind Kane’s continued scoring prowess in the veteran stages of his career:

1. Shots by location

Kane ranks highly among NHL forwards in long-range shots on goal (14; 90th percentile) and midrange shots on goal (40; 86th percentile) this season. The breakdown of his eight goals by location is four from high-danger zones, three from midrange and one from long range.

Last season with Detroit, Kane also ranked highly among forwards in both midrange shots on goal (57; 86th percentile) and long-range shots on goal (18; 87th percentile) despite missing 10 games. It’s also worth noting 19 of Kane’s 21 goals last season were scored from the middle regions of the ice (nine high-danger goals plus 10 midrange goals).

Since the start of the NHL's puck and player tracking era (2021-22), Kane ranks sixth among U.S.-born forwards in long-range shots on goal (127).

2. Power-play impact

The Red Wings are tied for seventh in the NHL this season in power-play conversion percentage (23.6). Kane frequently plays on the first unit when healthy, usually with forwards Dylan Larkin, Alex DeBrincat, Lucas Raymond and defenseman Moritz Seider. Another veteran forward, James van Riemsdyk, also sees first power-play usage for the Red Wings.

Kane ranks in the 84th percentile among forwards in power-play skating distance (19.23 miles) this season and 79th percentile at the position in power-play offensive zone time percentage (61.1), which is the percentage of time that the puck spends in the offensive zone while the player is on the ice with the man-advantage and the game clock is running. Kane, despite missing significant time, ranks third on Detroit in power-play assists (nine) behind Raymond (17) and Seider (16).

Kane also recently reached his top skating speed of the tracking era (since 2021-22) at 22.80 mph (81st percentile among forwards) against the Montreal Canadiens on Jan. 10.

3. Supporting cast

Kane has well-established chemistry with DeBrincat; the forwards frequently play on the same line at even strength and on the power play and also played together for five seasons with the Blackhawks from 2017-18 to 2021-22. DeBrincat had two 40-goal seasons with Chicago as Kane’s teammate and frequent linemate, and Kane has had assists on nine of DeBrincat’s 30 goals (tied for third in entire NHL) this season; Kane assisted on a goal by DeBrincat to tie Modano's points mark among U.S.-born players.

Detroit, as a team, ranks highly in both high-danger shots on goal (455; seventh) and long-range shots on goal (345; fifth). Although the Red Wings have been one of the bigger surprises in the NHL this season, the fact that they have the sixth-worst 5-on-5 shooting percentage (8.2) shows they have plenty of room for improvement in that category -- not drastic regression. Detroit ranks in the middle of the pack in 5-on-5 shot attempts percentage (49.4; 17th) and has benefited from the acquisition of goalie John Gibson (17-3-1, .927 save percentage in past 21 games), giving Kane and the Red Wings plenty of staying power this season.

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