Perhaps the most interesting part about this All-Star format is seeing which players are considered the best among their peers and were chosen early on in the draft, and which have yet to establish a name for themselves and were therefore left to wait until the later rounds to be selected.  Another interesting aspect of the show was listening in on the mic’d up players, as they discuss everything, from the players being selected to the blonde smokeshow handing out the jerseys.

Patrick Kane took a moment to discuss the latter while sitting alongside Florida Panthers’ defenseman Brian Campbell.  You can listen to that and many other sounds bytes from last night’s festivities in the video below (Kane’s approval of the blonde comes at the 1:42 mark).

Patrick Kane

This sweet set of hands may not be enough to earn Kane “Goal of the Year” honors, thanks to previous performances from Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene, but he does appear to be a front-runner for “Shootout Goal of the Year.”  Sorry Bertuzzi.

Carrying the puck down the right hand side, Kane got his head up just in time to notice Hossa streaking towards the net.  After picking out his target, the only thing left for Kane was to figure out a way to get him the puck.  He decided to go with the spin-o-rama backhand pass, and it couldn’t have worked out any better, as the puck landed square on Hossa’s sick before being deposited in the back of the net.

That was just the beginning of Kane’s big night, as he added another assist and scored the shootout winner during the Blackhawks’ 3-2 victory.  Here is a look at his spin-o-rama assist.

After Jonathan Toews tied the game with less than two minutes left in regulation during Game 7 last night, it appeared as though Patrick Kane would once again be giving a big “F U” to the fans in Vancouver.  Thanks to Alex Burrows‘ overtime heroics, the opposite would end up happening, as the Blackhawks were sent home in the first round one year after winning the Stanley Cup.

And rather than wave Kane goodbye, this fan decided to give him the one-finger salute.

Hat Tip – [MockSession]

Secondly, I would hate to see Joey, The Junior Reporter’s season come to an early end.  Just watch this kid.  Absolutely adorable.  And smart too!  Patrick Sharp, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane were all unable to stump Joey when it came to Blackhawks trivia.

Here is a look at some of Joey’s work thus far this season.  You can access his facebook fan page here.

TMZ Sports is really killing it lately with the behind the scenes coverage and asking all the tough questions. A couple weeks ago they caught Tiger Woods buying gum. Thrilling! Now, they have Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews walking into a Hollywood club with the Stanley Cup. Gasp! I guess you’ll get some of the bad mixed with the good — Jared Allen trying to fight somebody in a bar for calling his girlfriend the c-word, for example.

All was not completely anticlimactic, though. TMZ did ask Patrick Kane, who is quickly becoming a media favorite, if he was going to score with a lot of chicks since he was bringing the Cup inside the club. As if that’s not a rhetorical question, Kane humored the TMZ reporter anyway by responding, “I better.”  Yeah, Patrick Kane better because the Stanley Cup has to be the easiest thing next to a roofie to get a chick to sleep with you.

At the end of the clip, TMZ asks some random girl if she thinks Kane will get “vagina” because he brought the Holy Grail to the club. She says she thinks so, but Kane beat her team (assuming that’s the Vancouver Canucks because she said she’s from Canada). Hey random girl, TMZ wasn’t asking if you’d hook up with him (and don’t kid yourself, you would), he was asking if other girls would.

Click here to watch the video at TMZ

The wait is finally over!  Last night at the Wachovia Center, the Chicago Blackhawks became the first team in this year’s Stanley Cup Finals to win on the road.  As a result, they were rewarded with their first Stanley Cup since 1961 and judging by their initial celebration, it sure does appear as though it has been a while since this team won a championship.

In all fairness, it appears as though no one on the ice was aware that the puck had gone in at the 4:06 mark of overtime except for goalscorer Patrick Kane.  And as he zipped all the way down the ice, tossing his stick and gloves in the air in euphoria, many of his teammates stood by and watched, unsure if this was really the end.  Even the fans and commentators seemed confused.

Upon further review, the goal was good and the real celebration could finally begin.

With the Western Conference semi-final series between the Blackhawks and Canucks headed back to Vancouver for Game 3 tonight, a warning has been issued to all local cabbies:  Beware of Patrick “Twenty Cent” Kane.

In an effort to better prepare these men and women behind the wheel, the front page of the Vancouver 24 Hours asked citizens to kindly tip their taxi drivers in dimes in order to help them avoid a beating at the hands of the Hawks’ mullet-wearing sniper.  Here is an excerpt from the article featured on page 20 of the paper:

Vancouver’s taxicab community needs your support.

With the Chicago Blackhawks’ Patrick Kane coming to town for Games 3 and 4 of the Canucks-Blackhawks series, cabbies in the Lower Mainland are banding together and ensuring they have the proper change ready — two dimes, in particular — just in case it’s needed.

Kane and his cousin were charged with beating up a taxi driver in Buffalo in an August 2009 incident after the cabbie allegedly was unable to provide 20 cents in change for the $15 paid by Kane.

It’s up to us as a society to band together and keep our beaded-seat-sitting brothers and sisters safe. If you pull up next to a cab driver at a light this week, show them your solidarity by giving them a different finger for a change. A thumbs up.

You can bet that Kane’s focus will be on Game 3, and not on his mode of transportation afterwards.  And besides, when it comes to making his way around the city of Vancouver, past experiences show that “20 cents” seems to prefer limos rather than taxis.

Hat Tip – [Puck Daddy]

In hockey circles around the world, it is a sacred tradition for players to grow beards during their playoff run.  Sometimes those beards only last a few weeks, and sometimes they are given the opportunity to grow thick and strong for a few months, which generally implies that your team has made a long run towards the championship.

Then there are those who struggle to cultivate a few whiskers on their chin, even after a solid month of growth.  That was the case for Patrick Kane last year when his Chicago Blackhawks made it all the way to the Conference Finals before being eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings.  Three rounds later, and his playoff beard had barely sprouted beyond microscopic levels.

So to avoid the embarrassment of another shady teenage mustache, Kane has decided to opt for a playoff mullet, and may I be the first to say that is an excellent choice.  After all, it appeared to work out well for Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr during their glory days with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Hat Tip – [Puck Daddy]

It should not surprise anyone to hear that the 2009-10 Chicago Blackhawks have been partying like it’s 1961.  After all, who can blame them.  They currently sit on top of the Central Division, are only two points out of top spot in the NHL, and appear more likely than ever to win their first Stanley Cup in 49 years.

So when several of the players, including Patrick Kane, Kris Versteeg and John Madden, were caught on camera partying topless with some ladies inside a limo in Vancouver over the past weekend, the response from many was “as long as they are winning, let them do all the partying with the girls that they wish.”

But Wait!  Isn’t John Madden married?

Although these pics do raise some interesting questions regarding Madden’s marriage (notice we said “raise questions” and not “provide answers”), it does help end any debate surrounding whether steroids are an issue in the NHL.

So what else have the photos helped prove?  How about the fact that Patrick Kane has matured from a kid who robs cab drivers, to a man who pays for limo rides, even if they happen to include a few less-than-mediocre women.  Let’s consider this to be a step in the right direction for him.

Hat Tip – [The Province]