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#Kane4Hart - My Case for the Hart (MVP) Trophy



CHICAGO, IL -- Well, folks, we are nearing the end of the 2018-19 regular season.

 It's really mind-blowing how fast time's gone--there are just fifteen games left for the Blackhawks to try and fight their way back into the playoffs.

 But, that's not really what we're here to talk about today. We're going to talk about the one player the Hawks have desperately needed this season to produce, and the one player who went above and beyond to do so.

 We're talking about Patrick Kane, in case there was any confusion.

 As we near the end of the season, NHL awards talk seems to pop up on my Twitter timeline more and more frequently. There are talks of the Norris (best defenseman), the Vezina (best goaltender), the Jack Adams (best coach), etc. The one that's talked about the most frequently, usually, is the Hart Trophy--aka, the MVP trophy.

 There are a lot people arguing that Nikita Kucherov of Tampa Bay Lightning royalty should be a shoo-in for the Hart this season. And, look, I'm not going to sit here and say that his 100+ points aren't good, or that he's not deserving. Dude is fully deserving of this trophy, but I think there might be a better candidate in Patrick Kane.

 Same could be said for Connor McDavid--he's pulling his Edmonton Oilers team towards a playoff spot, too, doing Connor McDavid things to try and save his lackluster team. I still think, though, he doesn't beat out Kane for this one.

 Hear me out.

 Without Patrick Kane, the Blackhawks would be stuck at the very, very bottom of the league. That's not to say that Jonathan Toews, or Alex DeBrincat or Dylan Strome don't do anything--they (and like, half of the rest of the team) contribute a lot, too. But, without Kane, you don't get to sit in a playoff spot for 45 minutes after the rough November and December they had. You don't go on a seven-game winning streak, beating teams no one thought you'd beat.

 Kane went on a 20-game point streak, people. Twenty games. That's not a fluke, that's not an accidental streak. That is the result of a player who shows up for his team to get them the two points in any way he can.

 Even just last night against Buffalo, he passed Steve Larmer in career points--moving to fourth overall in the franchise with 924. Did I mention he did it in back-to-back shifts?

 That's the thing about Kane--he may not score every single night (not everyone can be Wayne Gretzky, okay?), but he is able to create chances for his teammates and give this team their best shot at winning games right now. Without Kane, those crazy good passes and tips don't happen.

 On top of that, look at the numbers--he's on pace to beat his career high 106 points (his 2015-16 year that won him... wait for it... the Hart Trophy), sitting at 40 goals and 56 assists for 96 points with 15 games yet to play. He's currently second in points and third in the league in goals, so yeah, the numbers also show that he's pretty damn good.

 That's why I think he really should be the league MVP. Yes, there are other guys on other teams who are more skilled or do just as good of a job. Let's look at Kucherov for a second again, just to really drive this home. In the case of Kucherov, the Lightning, I'm convinced, would be just fine on star-power without him in the lineup. I guarantee you they'd still be in first place. Maybe not by as large a margin, but you can't tell me that Steven Stamkos, Victor Hedman, Andrei Vasilievsky, Brayden Point, Ryan McDonagh, et al. couldn't find ways to win without Kucherov. That team is loaded.

 Or, look at McDavid. Sure, the Oilers are a dumpster fire--we're all aware of that. The only other player on the ice who maybe could match McDavid would maybe be Leon Draisaitl, and I'm hesitant to even say he could match him. But, I'm not convinced that the Oilers would do much differently than they're playing now--McDavid was suspended for two games, and the Oilers played just fine without him. I know it's a small sample size, being just two games, but they beat a deflated Anaheim team, and they lost to Nashville in a shootout--I wouldn't argue with 3 out of 4 possible points there.

 The Hawks, on the other hand, lost Kane to illness earlier this season, and were complete routed by an inconsistent Vancouver team. It was actually the last nail in the coffin before Coach Quenneville was fired, which is a whole different can of worms, but worth mentioning. Needless to say, they looked terrible without him.

 All of this is to say that even if you ignore the numbers, Patrick Kane means the world and more to this team. He's thirty years old and still tearing it up out there shift after shift, because he is Patrick Kane. I'm convinced he's the best American player currently in the game, but I wouldn't necessarily disagree with you if you said he's making an argument to be the best American player ever in the sport if he ever reaches retirement.

 So, I've done my part, now it's time for you to do yours--do you think Kane deserves the Hart this year? If you do, go tweet #Kane4Hart and let's see if we can get this thing trending. 

 The Hawks have 9 points to make up in 15 games if they're going to make the dance, and midnight hasn't dawned on them just yet.

 Are you in?
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