The Sharks will be without one of their top players to open up the 2019-20 NHL regular season. Evander Kane has been suspended three games, NHL Public Relations announced Tuesday.
Kane was assessed a game misconduct midway through the third period Sunday in the Sharks' preseason finale against the Vegas Golden Knights after an incident with defenseman Deryk Engelland. He was ejected for "abuse of officials."
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The 28-year-old winger made contact with an official and then shoved him after the two fell to the ice. Kane ripped the official's actions after the game.
"I get kicked out of the game for getting jumped from behind by a referee. I've never seen a ref take five strides," Kane said, via ESPN. "If you look at his face, he's getting all this power and he's trying to drive me into the ice, which is what he did. That's unbelievable.
”Talk about abuse of an official? How about abuse of a player? It's an absolute joke."
San Jose Sharks
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The Sharks will be without Kane for two games against the Golden Knights and a road matchup with the Anaheim Ducks. Vegas and Anaheim are each in the Pacific Division and getting wins against them early in the same will be vital to San Jose's playoff hopes.
Kane played 75 regular-season games last season and scored 56 points, the second-highest total of his 10-year career. His 30 goals scored tied a career-high.