BLOG: Kane Named Best Stickhandler, Second Best Passer by NHLPA Peers

Like a fine wine, Patrick Kane seemingly keeps getting better with age.
With 1,000 NHL games and 1,000 points under his belt, you'd be hard pressed to find a better playmaker and offensive catalyst than Showtime. And his peers overwhelmingly agree.
In the annual NHLPA player poll -- surveying nearly 500 players across all 31 NHL teams -- Kane was voted the best stickhandler with nearly 50% of the vote and came in a close second in the best passer category with over 20% of the ballots, just 0.42% behind winner Niklas Backstrom (approximately two votes).

Kane finished third in the NHL with 51 assists in 56 games during the 2020-21 season, matching his total from 70 games last season and on pace (74.68 across 82 games) to eclipse his career-best 66 helper year in 2018-19. His 66 points on the year were near a 100-point season pace (96.64 across 82 games), a feat he's accomplished just twice in his Hall of Fame career (2015-16, 2018-19).
Kane also garnered 3.48% of the vote for the question "If you need to win one game, who is the one player (any position) you would want on your team?".