Patrick Kane is back and ready for the Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Chicago Blackhawks have received some great news in advance of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, as star winger Patrick Kane will be ready to go for Game 1 of the postseason on Wednesday against the Nashville Predators:

Great to be back for the playoffs. Thank you to all the great fans for the many well wishes over the last seven weeks!

— Patrick Kane (@88PKane) April 14, 2015

Kane was recently cleared to play by doctors after suffering a broken clavicle in late February. He underwent surgery and was expected to miss up to 12 weeks, but by coming back in time for the playoffs, he’ll only have missed about seven.

Getting Kane back will obviously be a huge boost for a Blackhawks team that lost four games in a row to end the season. Chicago went 12-8-1 without Kane and finished 48-28-6 on the season for a total of 102 points. That was good for third place in the Central Division and fourth overall in the Western Conference. With the way the new playoff seeding system works in the NHL, the Blackhawks have to go on the road to start against the Predators, who finished in second place in the division with 104 points.

Kane is one of the most talented players in the NHL, and he was tied for the league-lead in points when he got hurt with 64 points in 61 games. Even despite missing the rest of the regular season, Kane still ranked 28th in total points, and he finished fourth in the league with 1.05 points per game.

The Blackhawks finished 17th in the NHL in goals per game, which was certainly a byproduct of missing Kane for so much time. Prior to this season, Chicago hadn’t finished outside the top five in goals per game since the 2007-08 campaign, and the Blackhawks were second the past two years. Over the last 21 games without Kane, Chicago managed just 2.33 goals per game, a mark that would rank in the bottom five of the league.

Kane not only helps in five-on-five action, but he should also provide scoring punch to an inconsistent power play that ranked just 20th in the league this season. A team featuring Kane, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa and Patrick Sharp, among others, should be much more potent on the power play, and the hope is that Kane can help remedy some of those issues.

With Kane back, the Blackhawks have seen their odds to win the Stanley Cup improve over the last few days. Chicago is the favorite to win the West with 15/4 odds, per Bovada, and the odds to win the Cup are at 7/1. The New York Rangers are currently the favorite to win it all with 5/1 odds, but if Kane can get back into a rhythm quickly and the Blackhawks get rolling on all cylinders, don’t be surprised if Chicago is celebrating another Stanley Cup victory.