Oilers now have competition for Evander Kane's services.

The Edmonton Oilers were hoping to get an injection of offense and attitude in the form of Evander Kane and according to reports we've been hearing since Kane had his contract terminated by the San Jose Sharks it sounded like that was in fact where he was going to be heading. On Saturday night however National Hockey League insider Elliotte Friedman dropped some new information that may spoil the Oilers' plans.

According to Friedman the Oilers are no longer the only team in the mix and it sounds like the Washington Capitals have entered the picture. Whether or not this will now cause a bidding war for Kane's services remains to be seen, but the simple fact that the Oilers have fallen well out of playoff contention could be enough to push the controversial forward towards the Capitals. Unlike the Oilers the Capitals have maintained their spot in the playoff picture this late into the season, and it could very well be that Kane is more interested in chasing a cup than playing for an Edmonton Oilers team that is winless in their last 7 games.

Here is what Friedman had to say on this matter:

"The other things Oilers fans are wondering about is Evander Kane. Now we still don't have any clarity on if the NHL is going to add any further penalty to him at this point in time or not," said Friedman on Saturday night's NHL broadcast. "We'll see we're still awaiting that decision but another team that has at least discussed it is the Washington Capitals. There's nothing done, no contract or anything like that, but the Capitals are another team that have looked into this in addition to the Oilers."

Of course any team that brings in Evander Kane could very well be setting itself up for a cursed monkey paw type of scenario. There's no question that Kane has tremendous talent on the ice and can produce offensively, but the other things he brings to the table could also prove to be catastrophic for a team already in a position to contend for the playoffs. Kane's personality has been known to rub players the wrong way, just ask the Winnipeg Jets or the San Jose Sharks about that, and that could potentially disrupt the existing chemistry in any locker room he is injected into.