Kane & DeBrincat The New Kane & Toews Duo?
More often than not, successful hockey teams have a duo on their team that seems to just click more than they do with other players. Some classic NHL examples include Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier, Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr, Stan Mikita and Bobby Hull, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkn, Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom. The list goes on and on as far as dynamic duos that had success in the NHL. And on that list of duos, there is without a doubt a spot for Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. The three Stanley Cups alone put them on this list. But you don't get three Stanley Cups without putting up insane numbers along the way. And both of those players did just that. Let's take a look at some of the numbers they put up during those cup runs and then look at why Alex DeBrincat should be considered the new Robin to Patrick Kane's batman.
2010 Stanley Cup:
Patrick Kane- 28 total points, 10 goals and 18 assists (tied for 2nd in assists in the playoffs that season)
Jonathan Toews- 29 total points, 7 goals and 22 assists (led the the playoffs in assists that season)
2013 Stanley Cup:
Patrick Kane- 19 total points, 9 goals and 10 assists
Jonathan Toews- 14 total points, 3 goals and 11 assists
2015 Stanley Cup:
Patrick Kane- 23 total points (tied for 1st in points in the playoffs that season) , 11 goals and 12 assists
Jonathan Toews- 21 total points (tied for 4th in points in the playoffs that season), 10 goals and 11 assists
So as a duo, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews definitely have put together quite the resume on the ice. But like all good things, they come to an end. And in the past few seasons the duo just hasn't seemed to be the same. Now obviously there is one huge reasoning we can put behind that decline in production. That reason being Jonathan Toews' battle with Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS). That caused him to miss all of the 2020 season. At the same time, Alex DeBrincat was coming off a 41 goal sophomore season in the NHL and would make the most of his top line opportunity with Patrick Kane.
Fast forward to now, and without a doubt the best duo on the Chicago Blackhawks is Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat. It really was the tale of two seasons for both players this year, but because of one another, it was hard to tell. Early in the season, Patrick Kane might've struggled a bit to find the back of the net, but his assists numbers were still there because he was constantly finding the stick of Alex DeBrincat who would finish the job. Then in the second half of the season, it was the complete opposite. Alex DeBrincat was the one finding Patrick Kane to put in the back of the net.
And although the Blackhawks season was a tough one to watch, both Patrick Kane and Alex DeBrincat did their part. Patrick Kane tied his career high in assists with 66 and Alex DeBrincat tied his career high in goals at 41. So while it may be awhile before the Blackhawks are back to a contending team, these two players will 100% be the ones leading the way, should they still be here the next time the Blackhawks are contenders.
Kane and Toews highlights below:
Kane and DeBrincat highlights below:
| POLL | ||
MAI 8 | 108 ANSWERS Kane & DeBrincat The New Kane & Toews Duo? Is Kane & DeBrincat the new Kane & Toews duo? | ||
| 100%! | 79 | 73.1 % |
| No, nobody will ever outperform the Kane Toews duo | 29 | 26.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
