Kane is currently completing a 21-game suspension for violating COVID protocols and would've been eligible to return on Tuesday against the New Jersey Devils. He’s under contract with the Sharks until 2025, which carries a $7 million cap hit.
I think that while it’s unlikely Kane gets claimed, waiving him and assigning him to the AHL was likely the best course of action. Nobody is likely to take on the contract but keeping him off the ice isn’t going to do much good either and perhaps there’s at least the possibility of him rebuilding some value over time. And if someone does claim him, the Sharks are able to move on from the situation and would do so with quite a bit more cap space.
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