Oilers trade Evander Kane to Canucks for pick

The Edmonton Oilers are trading Evander Kane to the Vancouver Canucks, for a fourth-round pick in Friday's draft, the teams announced Wednesday.

There's no salary retention in the trade, per Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli.

Kane is entering the final year of his contract, which carries a $5.125-million cap hit. He was considered a strong candidate to be moved for salary cap reasons after the Oilers lost their second consecutive Stanley Cup Final earlier in June.

Kane had a 16-team no-trade clause, and the Canucks were his preferred choice, adds The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. Kane is from Vancouver.

The 33-year-old spent the entire 2024-25 regular season on long-term injured reserve after undergoing abdominal surgery last September and knee surgery in January. Kane returned to the ice for Game 2 of Edmonton's Round 1 matchup with the Los Angeles Kings and notched 12 points in 21 playoff games.

Kane signed a one-year deal with the Oilers during the 2021-22 season after the San Jose Sharks terminated his contract. He then re-upped with Edmonton on a four-year pact.

He notched 111 points in 161 games with the Oilers. The Atlanta Thrashers drafted Kane fourth overall in 2009, and he spent four seasons with the Winnipeg Jets after they relocated. He was traded to the Buffalo Sabres ahead of the 2015-16 campaign before being moved to the Sharks in 2017-18.

Kane has 617 points in 930 career games.

The Oilers want to clear cap space as they need to sign star restricted free-agent defenseman Evan Bouchard to an extension this summer. Connor McDavid is also eligible to ink a new deal as of July 1, but that wouldn't kick in until 2026-27.

The Canucks are looking to get back in the playoff hunt after a disappointing season riddled with injuries and drama. Kane should fit into the hole created by Brock Boeser's likely departure in free agency.