Evander Kane has reached a verbal agreement to sign with the Edmonton Oilers for the rest of the NHL season, sources told ESPN’s Kevin Weekes on Thursday.
A Kane-to-Edmonton agreement comes as the NHL on Thursday cleared the veteran winger of potential violations of COVID-19 protocols.
Sources told Weekes that Kane’s deal with the Oilers is for one year, carries a cap hit of $2.1 million, and has a no-movement clause. It includes a signing bonus of $625,000 and a base salary of $750,000. The cap hit is pro-rated since Kane is joining the team midway through the season.
Kane has been training in Vancouver, British Columbia, and could be ready to play as soon as this weekend, his agent, Dan Milstein, told ESPN on Thursday morning. The Oilers open a three-game road trip in Montreal on Saturday.
On Thursday, the NHL released the findings of its investigation into Kane’s cross-border travel while in the AHL. The league said it will not discipline the veteran winger after concluding there was “insufficient evidence to conclusively find that Mr. Kane knowingly made misrepresentations regarding his COVID-19 status or test results in connection with his international travel.”
The San Jose Sharks terminated Kane’s contract earlier this month, citing breach of contract. The NHLPA filed a grievance on his behalf, which has not yet been resolved.
Kane, 30, was in the fourth year of a seven-year, $49 million contract with San Jose that paid him $7 million annually. Kane will forfeit $22.8 million from the remainder of the deal (NHL contracts are guaranteed).
After serving a 21-game suspension for submitting a fake vaccination card, Kane was assigned to the AHL in November. The Sharks said Kane was fully vaccinated before being reinstated.