On the Fly, theScore's NHL roundtable series, continues. We're talking Patrick Kane, unquestionably the league's best player - and perhaps the greatest to ever come out of the United States.
Is No. 88 America's No. 1?
Ian McLaren: With three games remaining for the Chicago Blackhawks, Patrick Kane is the runaway winner of the Art Ross Trophy and the only player to reach 100 points this season. His impressive performance has pushed him over the point per game mark for his career (657 points in 655 games), and raises the question as to whether he could end up as the best American-born player of all time.
In terms of total points, he's not even halfway to Mike Modano's 1,374, but, at age 27, and health permitting, should have plenty of time to make up the difference. It's Pat LaFontaine who holds the points per game advantage, however, posting a remarkable 1,013 points over the course of an injury-plagued career that lasted only 865 games.
Kane would have to continue to improve in order to push his points per game average from 1.003 to Lafontaine's 1.17, but if his career has the longevity of Modano (who averaged 0.92 points per game), he could set a new bar for total points.
There's still a long way to go, but Kane is already a three-time Stanley Cup champion, further boosting his chances of going down in history as the best U.S.-born player the game has ever seen.
Navin Vaswani: With all due respect to Mr. LaFontaine, in the end, it will be Kane.
It's always tricky to compare players from different eras, but in this case, it isn't so difficult. LaFontaine played in an era in which goals were, well, scored. Kane doesn't have that luxury.
LaFontaine became a point per game player in his fourth full season in the league, as a 21-year-old in 1987-88. He was a force through 1993, when injuries hit, but he had one more stellar season, in 1995-96, scoring 91 points in 76 games.
The difference in eras for LaFontaine and Kane is striking.
LaFontaine:
| Season | Goals Per Game |
|---|---|
| 1986-87 | 3.67 |
| 87-88 | 3.71 |
| 88-89 | 3.74 |
| 89-90 | 3.68 |
| 90-91 | 3.46 |
| 91-92 | 3.48 |
| 92-93 | 3.63 |
| 93-94 | 3.24 |
| 94-95 | 2.99 |
| 95-96 | 3.14 |
Kane:
| Season | Goals Per Game |
|---|---|
| 2007-08 | 2.78 |
| 08-09 | 2.91 |
| 09-10 | 2.84 |
| 10-11 | 2.79 |
| 11-12 | 2.73 |
| 12-13 | 2.72 |
| 13-14 | 2.74 |
| 14-15 | 2.73 |
| 15-16 | 2.71 |
Everything about today's NHL is different - and arguably better. The players are bigger, stronger, and faster. The goalies have all but perfected their position.
While LaFontaine was a smallish player - like Kane - and could very well have thrived - like Kane - the guy who's done it in an NHL that will probably never again average three goals a game has to get the nod.
Wherever he ends up, when all is said and done, Kane will undoubtedly be in the greatest American NHLer conversation. And he's got half a career, if not more, to go.
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