Earlier this offseason, the Edmonton Oilers decided to try and clear up some money by trading Evander Kane to the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for a fourth-round draft pick. While Kane was a strong addition to the Oilers when he first arrived, he slowly fell out of order as he dealt with some major injuries that kept him out for a while, and he has yet to find his offensive confidence that fans had expected.
Related: Trusted Insider Speculates Oilers Could Pursue 8-Year Extension for Jake Walman
Despite being moved out, there has been a rumour going around on social media recently that Kane could return to the Oilers as a free agent after the 2025-26 campaign when his current contract is up.
#Canucks LW Evander Kane had 2 goals & 2 assists in a Division 1 Beer league game at Castledowns Rink in Edmonton last night for the BroadStreet Bullies, a team he played for in the summer of 2023.
— 2 Mutts Hockey Podcast (@2MuttsHockeyPod) August 6, 2025
Kane played under the name Fa Afo again.
Kane is spending his summer in…
While the 2 Mutts Hockey Podcast has a love-hate relationship with the fans, this is something to keep an eye on. Oilers fans were big fans of Kane off the ice, considering what he did for the community, despite his on-ice play slowly getting worse as the years went on.
His current contract, which has a $5.125 million cap hit, was too much for the Oilers to hang onto, considering they needed to free up some cap space to make some other moves, including signing Andrew Mangiapane; however, bringing Kane back on a team-friendly deal could make perfect sense.
Kane Could Return as Solid Depth Forward
Some fans in Edmonton despise Kane and wouldn’t be open to him returning whatsoever, considering his analytics don’t look good at all, and he seems to be declining rapidly as he nears the end of his playing career.
Evander Kane, acquired by VAN, is a shoot-first power forward who plays a simple game premised on speed, checking, and scoring. Not a strong play-driver at all and takes tons of dumb penalties. Needs to play with skilled playmaker. #Canucks pic.twitter.com/L14nbrOKRQ
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) June 25, 2025
Some fans also pick apart his willingness, or lack thereof, to try and win puck battles along the walls in the offensive zone. He is an impressive finisher when he gets himself to the right areas around the net in the offensive zone, but he didn’t seem to fit anywhere when the playoffs came around.
Flexibility should be given, considering he was returning from multiple surgeries before the 2024-25 season, but if he is unable to find his game with the Canucks next season, he could find himself fighting for a contract, rather than teams fighting to sign him.
At the end of the day, time will tell if the Oilers decide to bring Kane back at all. He could be a solid addition to their bottom-six forward group, especially if Isaac Howard and Matthew Savoie don’t end up working out next season and find themselves in the American Hockey League (AHL), and could be open to taking less money to return to a place he has spoken so highly about.
Any contract with the Oilers would have to be a short-term deal hovering around the $1 million annual range, but if Kane is willing to take that and return in a lesser role, there’s no harm in a reunion. For now, he will try and find his footing with the Canucks.
As the 2025-26 season approaches, be sure to continue following The Hockey Writers as your source for news from around the NHL and the hockey world.
Salary cap data courtesy of PuckPedia.
