Patrick Kane's expected Red Wings debut date revealed

The Detroit Red Wings made a significant acquisition by signing former Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane to a one-year contract last week worth $2.75 million. And while he still has yet to make his Red Wings debut, fans are excited to see him step onto the ice wearing the Winged Wheel. 

It was originally thought that he could make his first appearance in game action wearing Red Wings colors tomorrow night against his hometown Buffalo Sabres, but that doesn't appear to be the case. However, the good news is that he's trending towards making his debut in front of his new fans at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday against the visiting San Jose Sharks.

"I don't expect to play tomorrow, but we'll see what they all think and I'm hoping Thursday," Kane said today following practice. "We'll have a conversation with them, but nothing definitive right now." 

During today's skate, Kane skated on a line with former Chicago Blackhawks teammate Alex DeBrincat along with Joe Veleno, a potential line that could see game play later this week, but not tomorrow night.

"I think tomorrow would be a little ambitious," head coach Derek Lalonde said. "I think ideally, we'll give him a morning skate tomorrow, have a similar practice on Wednesday and then go from there. That's what he needs, it's his first practice in a long time. I think he needed those reps, those 5 on 5 type reps. We'll give him a similar look on Wednesday and then go from there." 

The Red Wings take on the Sabres tomorrow at KeyBank Center starting at 7:30 PM EST before returning home to face the Sharks on Thursday night. If Kane indeed is in the lineup on Thursday night, he'll get a very warm and loud welcome from the fans in Detroit. 

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