Oilers' Evander Kane issues bold reaction over intense opening fights between USA vs Canada players at 4 Nations

Evander Kane is very familiar with dropping the gloves. The Oilers' bruising winger has fought 32 times in the regular season and three more times in the playoffs throughout his 15-year NHL career.

Like the rest of the hockey world, Kane was tuned into Saturday night's rivalry game between Canada and the US. Not even he could've expected the wild action to start the play's opening period.

The Vancouver, BC native went to X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts on the wild first minute of the game, which included three scraps.

"I must say, that first 10 mins (clapping emoji) is how you sell the game. And some of you want to get ride of fighting. Great start," Kane wrote.

Kane certainly enjoyed the chaotic start that went down at the Bell Centre on Saturday night. He was probably itching to be involved in the action.

The 33-year-old has yet to play in a game this season due to offseason surgery to repair several torn adductor and abdominal muscles. He also recently underwent a separate procedure on his knee, given a four-to-eight-week recovery timeline on Jan. 10.

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Evander Kane will hope to return in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers hope to have Evander Kane back in the lineup by the time the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin.

His four-to-eight-week return projection would mean he could be available sometime in March. However, he'll need to get in plenty of full practice time before seeing game action for the first time in almost a year. Edmonton could opt to keep the veteran winger on LTIR until the postseason begins to accrue the $5.125 million in cap space from Kane's contract.

Evander Kane had a productive 2023-24 season, producing 44 points (24 goals, 20 assists) in 77 regular-season games while adding another eight points (four goals, four assists) in 20 games through the Oilers' run to the Cup Finals. They will welcome his physicality and goal-scoring ability back whenever that time comes.

The Oilers return from the 4 Nations break on Saturday, Feb. 22, for an afternoon matchup with the Flyers in Philadelphia. The puck drops at 1 p.m. EST at the Wells Fargo Center.