Evander Kane missed practice yesterday for what Buffalo Sabres coach Dan Bylsma called “personal reasons.” Now, reports have surfaced indicating that those personal reasons could in fact be an investigation into an incident that happened Sunday morning at a local hotel, according to the Buffalo News.
Here’s what the outlet had to say on the status of the incident:
Kane has not been charged with any crime, and law enforcement officials would confirm only that there is an ongoing investigation by officers from the department’s Sex Offense Squad.
“We have an investigation ongoing,” a Buffalo police source said. “We are not naming the suspect, and we do not expect it to be resolved in the very near future.”
The News additionally reported that Kane has already secured legal representation from Paul J. Cambria—the same attorney who represented Patrick Kane over the summer when rape allegations surfaced. Charges were never brought against Kane after several weeks of investigation.
While Evander Kane is certainly innocent until proven guilty, the Sabres organization is taking these allegations very seriously, according to a statement released by the team.
“We take the allegation made today against Evander Kane very seriously. We are gathering facts and have been in touch with the NHL and Evander’s representatives. Until we have more information we will not have any additional comment.”
According to the News, Kane, who was acquired from Winnipeg via trade in February, has been working hard this year to repair a tarnished reputation from his time in Winnipeg. The outlet reported that Kane rented a helicopter and took two of his teammates to Toronto for a baseball playoff game in October. He has also donated time and money to the Boys & Girls Club of Buffalo. In addition, he took 60 children to dinner and an arcade in November, and earlier this month treated 50 kids from the club to dinner and a $10,000 Christmas shopping spree at Target.
