Evander Kane quietly settles assault lawsuit with Buffalo woman

Evander Kane's bankruptcy lawyer confirmed to The Athletic yesterday that Kane has settled a longstanding lawsuit brought on by Rachel Kuechle, a Buffalo, NY area woman who accused Kane of assaulting her back in 2016.

Documents filed in Erie County State Supreme Court on behalf of Kuechle back in 2016 allege that Kane met her in a bar, invited her to a party and then attacked her, causing cuts and bleeding that required multiple surgeries. Kuechle did not provide details of how or why she was attacked but her lawyers allege she suffered "serious emotional trauma" and "serious, permanent and painful personal injuries."

More from The Athletic's Daniel Kaplan:

Kuechle sued Kane in 2016. Her complaint outlined how Kane met her on the evening of Dec. 26, 2015, at Encore Restaurant in Buffalo, where Kane played for the Sabres. While there, he provided her with alcohol, according to the complaint. The complaint states that later that night, he invited her to the Buffalo Marriott Harbor Center “under the false pretext of attending a party at his hotel room.”

“While in the hotel room, he inflicted a battery upon Kuechle,” the complaint read. “The physical battery was … violent and offensive in nature,” causing Kuechle to “suffer bodily injury including lacerations, extensive bleeding, requiring multiple surgeries, and blood transfusions and serious emotional trauma, all to her detriment.”

Kane's counter-lawsuit, which claims defamation on Kuechle's part, has also been included in the settlement.

Needless to say, this news is just a footnote in the ongoing legal battles in Kane's life. Without going through the entire chronology of Kane's legal issues, he currently is in bankruptcy court, divorce court and is going through a mediation process with the San Jose Sharks over what he feels is wrongful termination.

I have no insight into this case brought on by Kuechle and, by all accounts, Kane's estranged wife Anna Kane seems like an unreliable witness, but... I also don't see anyone else in the NHL with multiple court cases. The fact of the matter is that trouble follows this guy around like a bad fart.