Sabres on Evander Kane accusations: ‘If true, we have to deal with it’

BUFFALO, NY – The Buffalo Sabres’ draft weekend opened with news that forward Evander Kane was under investigation for two criminal complaints for alleged ‘physical harassment’ of two women at the Buffalo bar Bottoms Up. The news was reported by WIVB, which quoted Buffalo police as saying the investigation was in its “preliminary stages.” 

It was the second time in the span of seven months that Kane was under investigation. In December 2015, Kane was investigated by police for an alleged ‘sex offense’ at a local hotel. He was later cleared of all wrongdoing by the police.

Sabres GM Tim Murray was asked about the latest controversy involving Kane.

“No, I haven’t spoke with him. I’ve heard the stories. The very first part of it that came out didn’t sound very good. The stuff I’ve heard since from various people that have made statements that night that say they didn’t make statements. I’ve talked to his agency. They’ve heard a different story than what was reported. So I really … I’m commenting, but I can’t comment in detail. I’ve got nothing to comment on,” he said.

“I don’t know all the details. I don’t know what’s right or wrong. I’m sitting right here, and you can come in and say ‘I’m over there banging my head against the wall,’ I don’t know. The police will investigate. There will be evidence or there won’t be evidence. And it’ll either go forward or it’ll go away.”

We asked Murray if he was frustrated that Kane was again involved in a situation involving a police investigation while playing in Buffalo.

“It frustrates me that it’s public. That it’s in the press,” he said. ‘People live their lives. If this is like the last one and in three days nothing happens and it goes away … sure, it’s frustrating. But it’s a wait and see.”

Murray said the team is waiting to see how the investigation plays out.

“If it’s true then we have to deal with it. If it’s false again, then I guess we have to come up with a different plan of attack to make sure that these accusations that may not be true, how do we stop them [from happening]?” he said.

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Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at [email protected] or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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