Patrick Kane
Kane is a 37-year-old right wing who, per the latest line page I could read, sits on Chicago's third line but still has a power-play role. His even-strength spot has moved around since Connor Bedard returned.
Role
Chicago Hockey Now's projected lines (PuckPedia data, updated Oct. 31, checked Nov. 2) have Kane at right wing on the third line with Oliver Moore and Frank Nazar, ahead of the Nov. 2 game against Colorado. Its change log says he dropped from the top six to the third line on Oct. 27. Kantserov-Bedard-Kane was the reported top line on Oct. 16 and Oct. 20. On the power play, Bedard slotted onto the left side of the top unit after his Oct. 14 return so Kane could move back to the right (Sun-Times, Oct. 12). ESPN's line page, about 8 days old, lists Kane on PP1 with Kantserov and Bedard. I could not confirm that the PP1 arrangement still holds, and the Daily Faceoff page returned no usable lineup data when I fetched it. I found no reliable ice-time figures. Competition for the right-wing work includes Ryan Donato, Andrew Mangiapane, Jordan Greenway and Teuvo Teravainen, whom the Oct. 31 page lists as a scratch. Chicago is 4-9 and averaging 2.2 goals per game, per a Scores24 preview, a prediction site.
Kane has stayed productive despite the demotion. A Scores24 preview credits him with seven assists in his last eight games. He set up Anton Frondell's power-play goal against Boston, his 900th career NHL assist. The Hockey News projected him on the top line and PP1 with Bedard and Roman Kantserov as a facilitator. Bleacher Nation (Nov. 2) has pushed since July for a Frondell line between Tyler Bertuzzi and Kane. That would put him back on a scoring line with a skilled center. With a team averaging 2.2 goals per game, optimists argue a move up the lineup is likely.
Kane has been dropped to the third line with two younger players, and the coaches have used Donato on the top line instead. The team is last in the Central, and the offense is weak. His power-play role depends on a unit that was 1-for-14 before Bedard returned (Sun-Times, Oct. 12). Skeptics also point to his age, 37, and to last season's line from our data: 14 games, 9 points, 25 shots and a minus-15 rating.
Where analysts split
The open question is whether Kane returns to a line with Bedard or a scoring-line center like Frondell, or stays on the third line. The beat views differ. Kantserov-Bedard-Kane was the Oct. 16 and Oct. 20 top line. Chicago Hockey Now's Oct. 31 projection has Donato there and Kane on the third line. Bleacher Nation wants a Frondell-Bertuzzi-Kane line. I found no coach statement explaining the Oct. 27 move.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
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