Evander Kane and Leon Draisaitl caught on video having heated argument

There's been plenty of speculation about some problems between Evander Kane and Leon Draisaitl lately, and last night added fuel to that fire.

During the game last night, the broadcast caught a moment where Kane and Draisaitl where leaning over having a heated argument. Both players seemed dialled into what looked like a significant argument about plays on the ice. Kevin Bieksa speculated on the broadcast it may have to do with Kane's positioning on the powerplay.


As many have pointed out, this is a situation we're seen happen more often on the Oilers bench. A few weeks ago, Oilers insider Rob Brown mentioned on the Got Yer Back podcast that they'd seen more of these arguments between Kane and Draisaitl, and afterwards coach Knoblauch separated the two.



Kane has almost been falling out of his role lately with the Oilers, and that's exactly what these tensions may be about. He's been dealing with some nagging injuries this season, and his level of play has significantly declined. When Kane is at his best he's a critical part of the roster as a physical threat with a scoring touch, but more often than not lately, he's floating out of position and lacking intensity on the third line. Kane has also not shied away from noting that he's seeing declining ice time and power play time, which he's found hard to deal with.

If the Oilers are going to do damage in the playoffs, Evander Kane needs to be fully on board and playing his best hockey. In the next few weeks before the playoffs, coach Knoblauch needs to prioritize finding a way to re-invigorate Kane and get him back to being a key player for the team. Right now, Kane may be distracting more than contributing.