June 15, 2015: Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane celebrates after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final series in Chicago. (AP)
The NHL is keeping close tabs on a police investigation involving Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane.
The Blackhawks said they are in the process of gathering information and didn’t comment further on the matter. The Buffalo News first reported the investigation on Thursday.
Kane’s upstate New York neighbors told the Chicago Tribune that police arrived as his lakefront property in Hamburg on Sunday night and that several plainclothes officers entered his house using flashlights. At least one wore gloves and was taking pictures in front of his house.
Hamburg Police Chief Gregory Wickett would not describe the nature of the investigation or confirm one exists.
"If and when an arrest is made, we will provide the information," he said.
Pat Brisson, Kane’s agent, said in a statement noting the team is gathering information on the case. “"It would not be appropriate to provide further comment at this time,” he added.
Sources told The Buffalo News on Thursday that the hockey superstar is the subject of a rape investigation by the Hamburg Police Department. The newspaper reported that no charges have been filed and police are on a strict gag order.
The News reported, citing sources close to the investigation, that a young local woman alleged that Kane, 26, took her home from a nightclub and raped her after meeting her at a Buffalo nightclub Saturday night.
The investigation comes after Chicago’s third Stanley Cup in six seasons. Kane has been lauded in recent years for his growth after several off-the-ice incidents early in his career.
Kane was scheduled to bring the Stanley Cup to Buffalo this weekend, but it's unclear whether that will happen.
Kane was playing at an MVP-caliber level last season before breaking his collarbone in February. But he returned in time for the playoffs, helping the Blackhawks win their third Cup in six seasons and his third since joining the team in 2007 after being selected by Chicago as the No. 1 overall in the NHL draft.
Kane helped the Blackhawks return to the playoffs during the 2008-09 season after a five-year drought. They lost in the conference finals to Detroit, but bounced back the next season to beat Philadelphia in six games in the Stanley Cup final. Kane and the Blackhawks won it again in 2013 as he earned the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
A member of the 2010 and '14 U.S. Olympic hockey teams, Kane has raised eyebrows with some of his off-ice behavior. He was arrested after an altercation with a cab driver in Buffalo in the summer of 2009. A few years later, photos posted on the Internet showed him partying in Madison, Wisconsin.
In an interview with The Associated Press before last year's Sochi Games, Kane said there were things he now knew that he didn't a few years earlier.
"How to work harder in the summer or take better care of yourself as far as eating and different things like that," Kane said. "Picking the right times to have fun with the guys and to make sure that when you're doing it, you're doing it right, and you're careful about the way you're going about it."
Click for more from The Buffalo News.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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