Patrick Kane 'was definitely looking at' Rangers before Tarasenko trade

Chicago Blackhawks veteran Patrick Kane wasn't ecstatic when he found out the St. Louis Blues had sent Vladimir Tarasenko to the New York Rangers.

"It's not, like, the happiest I've been to hear about a trade," he said Friday, according to NBC Sports Chicago's Charlie Roumeliotis. "I think the Rangers are a team that you definitely pay attention to and definitely are intrigued by, for obvious reasons."

He added, "If things were going to happen, that was a team I was definitely looking at. It seems like they kind of filled their void and went ahead and made a deal, so it is what it is."

The Blues shipped Tarasenko and defenseman Niko Mikkola to the Big Apple on Thursday in exchange for Sammy Blais, low-level prospect Hunter Skinner, a conditional 2023 first-round pick, and a conditional 2024 fourth-round selection.

Kane, 34, is in the final season of an eight-year, $84-million contract and can become an unrestricted free agent in the summer. His deal carries a full no-movement clause, but he has yet to inform general manager Kyle Davidson whether he will waive it.

"In fairness to Kyle, I haven't went to Kyle and said, 'I wanted to go here' (or) 'I want to (stay),'" Kane said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times' Ben Pope. "I haven't gotten to any of that yet. ... I think within the next 10 days or so, we'll probably get a clearer picture of what's going to happen."

The Rangers made their move for Tarasenko once they felt the asking prices for Kane and Timo Meier were too high, sources told ESPN's Emily Kaplan. New York was also reportedly wary of Kane's nagging hip injury. He missed three games in January due to a lower-body ailment.

Kane said the concerns about his injury are overblown.

"I'm not sure what the story is, to be honest with you, but I feel better than I did last year," he explained, per Roumeliotis. "It's just one of those things that maybe the story leaks out and it piles up a little bit."

Kane has nine goals and 26 assists in 46 games this season as the Blackhawks toil in the Central Division basement with a 15-29-5 record.

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