The National Hockey League season opened on Wednesday as the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks took on the New York Rangers and lifted their championship banner. The Blackhawks ended up losing in a tight game but came to the Barclays Center as the New York Islanders opened their new venue. 

The end result was another home opener spoiled as the defending champions beat the Islanders for their first win of the season. 

Despite these early results, the Blackhawks have a bigger controversy on their hands that transcends the NHL and extends into all sports. 

Superstar forward Patrick Kane is under investigation for an incident that occurred in his Buffalo, NY home Aug. 2. 

The investigation has taken many strange turns, and Kane has apologized for bringing drama to the Blackhawks and the NHL. However, it is still unclear as to what transpired that day, as each subsequent development has only blurred the case further. 

The alleged victim’s rape kit revealed Kane’s DNA underneath her fingernails and on her shoulders but not in her genital area, although there was foreign DNA in the area. The case became more complicated on Sept. 23 as the victim’s mother stated that she found the evidence bag of the victim’s rape kit torn open on her front step. 

The Erie County police department immediately rebuffed this claim, and the alleged victim’s lawyer, Thomas Eoannou, resigned from the case on the suspicion that the victim’s mother had contradicted her own story. 

The Erie County district attorney dismissed this move as an “elaborate hoax” by the victim’s mother, and the first grand jury hearing for this case was postponed, as it was believed that Kane and the victim were attempting to reach an outside settlement. 

Through training camp, Kane’s presence was controversial, but the Blackhawks fans applauded him every time he came onto the ice or scored a goal during the preseason. 

Neither Commissioner Gary Bettman nor the Blackhawks have suspended Kane pending the results of the ongoing  investigation. 

However, this case comes on the heels of two domestic and sexual abuse incidents in the NHL as recently as last year.  

The two players accused were former Los Angeles Kings player Slava Voynov (now back in the Kontinental Hockey League) and current Colorado Avalanche goalie Semyon Varlamov. 

Both players were suspended by their teams last year, and Voynov was denied a visa to stay and work in the United States

The two players were mired in the scandal for months. 

Between this and an alleged cocaine problem among NHL players, Bettman has several important decisions to make and investigations to launch as more and more of these incidents get reported. For now, Kane continues to play in the Blackhawks’ lineup as the investigation continues. 

Editor's Note:

The author is simply laying out the facts and is not taking a position on the investigation.