Buffalo Sabres winger Cory Conacher decided on wearing No. 88 when he was picked up from Ottawa off waivers on March 5, but not before he consulted a fellow player in the NHL who also sports those same digits.
Conacher, who wore 89 while with the Senators and Tampa Bay, could’ve continued on with that number in Buffalo, but he chose to go with 88 out of respect for former Sabre great Alexander Mogilny — once he contacted Patrick Kane, that is.
The young winger reached out to the Buffalo native and Chicago Blackhawks star, who he also skates with during the summer, to get the OK before making his debut in Buffalo against Kane’s squad Sunday night.
“He just texted me, he’s like, ‘I’m going to wear your number in Buffalo, is that all right?’” Kane said, via CSN Chicago. “I was like, ‘Yeah, you don’t need to be asking me about that stuff. It’s fine.’”
Kane’s play on the ice certainly proved how fine it was by him, as he scored a highlight-reel goal in his first game back home in four years Sunday night.
