Rumor: Patrick Kane's next team may have been leaked.

Initially many of us were expecting that star forward Patrick Kane would not make a decision regarding a new team at least until midway through the upcoming National Hockey League season, but recent developments may have changed things.

Last week, Kane informed reporters that he was closer to a return than had initially been anticipated and now for the first time we are hearing reports about where Kane could end up next. The latest on that front comes courtesy of Blackhawks reporter John Dietz of the Daily Herald, who over the weekend linked Kane to a former teammate of his from his time in Chicago.

"Watch for Patrick Kane to sign with the Detroit Red Wings," revealed Dietz on Sunday. "Someone who knows Kane very well said Kane told him he wanted to follow Alex DeBrincat if/when he was able. Of course there has to be mutual interest, so we'll see if Detroit extends an olive branch ..."

It is near impossible to tell what Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman is thinking even at the best of times and when it comes to a move of this magnitutde you can rest assured that nothing will leak from the Red Wings side of the equation. That being said, the team is currently sitting on over $5 million in projected cap space for this upcoming season so they do have the kind of room they would need to make a deal of this nature a reality.

Kane would of course have to take a significant pay cut from the cap hit of $10.5 million he had on his last contract, although how much of a pay cut his next deal will represent remains to be seen.

Could we soon see Kane alongside Alex DeBrincat once again? Only time will tell.