The National Hockey League said on Saturday that it intends to launch an investigation into allegations that San Jose Sharks' winger Evander Kane gambled on games that he played in.
"The League was made aware this evening of a post on social media alleging that San Jose Sharks Player Evander Kane bet on NHL games," the NHL said in a statement on Saturday. "The integrity of our game is paramount and the League takes these allegations very seriously."
An Instagram post on Saturday by an account claiming to be Kane's wife said, "Can someone ask [NHL Commissioner] Gary Bettman how they can let a player gamble on his own games? Bet and win with bookies on his own games?"
The Sharks said in a statement that they "support a full and transparent investigation into the situation to maintain the integrity of the game and consistency with our team values."
Requests for fair comment made via email and phone call to Kane's agent were not immediately returned on Saturday night.
The 29-year-old filed for federal Chapter 7 bankruptcy in California earlier this year and claimed that he lost $1.5 million from sports gambling and from gambling at casinos over the last year.
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas had also filed a lawsuit in 2019 seeking $500,000 in damages from Kane for unpaid casino debts.
The casino dropped the case in 2020.
The lawsuit had alleged that Kane had been given eight lines of credit in amounts ranging from $20,000 to $100,000 in 2019 that he did pay back, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.
Kane had signed a seven-year, $49 million contract in 2018 with the Sharks.
The winger has put up an average of 26 goals and just under 25 assists over the last three seasons.
Early Sunday morning, Kane responded to these allegations via his verified Twitter account:
— Evander Kane (@evanderkane_9) August 1, 2021
