Patrick Kane may or may not be ready to play at the start of next season.
The Rangers’ headlining trade-deadline acquisition of last season underwent hip resurfacing surgery Thursday and is expected to face a four-to six-month recovery period, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported.
A four-month timeline would bring Kane right to the start of the regular season in October, while six months would project a return two months into the season in December.
His agent, Pat Brisson, said Kane “wants to play for a long time,” and doctors are optimistic that will happen, according to Friedman.
Kane is an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career after a Hall of Fame-worthy run of 16 seasons in Chicago.
The Blackhawks traded their franchise star, who helped deliver the organization three Stanley Cups, to New York during the final year of his contract.
The Rangers likely won’t be able to retain Kane under their current salary-cap situation, in which they still have to pay Alexis Lafreniere and K’Andre Miller, but Kane’s injury status would probably deter the club anyway.
When Kane spoke to the media after the first-round loss to the Devils, the 34-year-old sounded like he was well aware of the Rangers’ cap crunch and that he probably wouldn’t fit in it.
Though Kane did say he “would love to be back” and that his Rangers cameo was a “great experience.”
Kane, who recorded 12 points in 19 regular-season games and six points in seven playoff contests with the Rangers, clearly labored during his brief stint in New York.
He acknowledged that he wasn’t operating at 100 percent and how disappointing it was not to be able to contribute like he knows he can.
It is yet to be seen where Kane will continue his storied NHL career, but the next club may have to wait for his services depending on how his rehabilitation goes.
Mike Sullivan was telling no lies when he told The Post he was with the Penguins for the long haul.
Pittsburgh’s newly hired president of hockey operations, Kyle Dubas, all but explicitly confirmed that Thursday during his introductory press conference.
“Sully can coach forever,” Dubas said, “I mean, he’s a great coach, so there’s no real expiration date on Mike.”
Dubas, who will serve as the Penguins’ interim general manager until a final decision is made on the role, said his conversations with Sullivan and captain Sidney Crosby played a major role in his decision to join the organization.
Among other glowing remarks, Dubas made it clear Sullivan was a major part of his vision for the Penguins.
“The way I view it is if people want to bet against Mike Sullivan, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and others, they can go ahead and do so” he said. “But I’m going to bet on them.”