Patrick Kane Is Still The Definition of Showtime
Gregory Shamus. Getty Images.There might never be a better crop of players to come into the NHL than the ones who came in those first few seasons after the lockout. Crosby and Ovechkin in 2005-06. Arguably two of the top 5 to ever play the game, and Ovechkin is just a matter of games away from being the greatest goal scorer in the history of the game. The following season had guys like Evgeni Malkin and Anze Kopitar, who have helped lead their teams to a combined 5 Cups. And then in comes Patrick Kane in the 2007-08 season. When all is said and done, he should be remembered as the greatest American-born hockey player ever.
15-20 years later, all of these dudes are still absolute killers. Patrick Kane ripped my heart out of my chest and shit all over it when he beat the Flyers in the 2010 Stanley Cup Final with that game 6 overtime goal. That was 15 years ago. And last night he's still out there doing the exact same thing in overtime to give the Red Wings their 5th win in a row.
Vintage, vintage Kaner. Give him an inch of space and a drop of time, and you're dead. That's all there is to it. If he has his hands free and his eyes can find a window just big enough for the puck to squeeze through, then he's putting that thing on a one-way flight to the back of the net. It's what he was put on this Earth to do.
But in true Showtime fashion, he knows when he needs to elevate his celly game to match the energy of his goal.
Now I don't know much about Patrick Kane's personal life. But I'm pretty sure we would have heard by now if he was an extremely devout Christian. I'm sure he's at least a little religious, but not to the point where he's constantly putting it on display. So do I think the sign of the cross celly was simply Patrick Kane demonstrating his faith and giving glory to God? Or do we think Kaner peeked up at the jumbotron during the game, saw a couple of nuns having themselves a good ol' time at Little Caesers Arena, and put this one together on the fly?
That, my friends, is what Showtime is all about.
P.S. -- Speaking of all-time beauties still lighting the lamp all these years later, here's Jaromir Jagr still chucking some in the back of the net at 53.
This man still has 50 more years of terrorizing goalies ahead of him.