San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane is being sued by a Las Vegas casino after he allegedly failed to pay back gambling markers totaling $500,000 in April 2019. At the time, the Sharks were in the Nevada city to face the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round of the 2019 NHL playoffs.

Gambling markers are special credits that allow high-profile gamblers easier access to large sums of money. According to an ESPN report, the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas filed the suit alleging that Evander Kane took out eight separate gambling markers totaling half of a million dollars.

Those eight credits were worth between $20,000 and $100,000 each and were taken out on or around April 15, according to the suit. That would place the alleged incident between games three and four of the playoff series between the Sharks and Golden Knights.

Cosmopolitan Hotel Las Vegas
Tourists walk on a pedestrian bridge next to The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, May 15, 2014. Several guests and visitors reported seeing black smoke rising from the resort property Saturday. Getty Images/Ethan Miller

In addition to seeking repayment of the $500,000, the Cosmopolitan also wants their legal fees associated with the incident covered. Neither side has responded publicly to the lawsuit.

The 28-year-old Kane is in the second year of his seven-season $49 million contract which he signed with the San Jose Sharks. Beyond being known as a talented attacking hockey player, he is also notorious for his feud with Vegas winger Ryan Reaves.

In fact, the two dropped the gloves during game three of their 2019 NHL playoff series, just before Kane allegedly borrowed the gambling markers. The bad blood did not cool during the summer.

In the final preseason game before the start of the NHL regular season, the Knights and Sharks squared off in a rematch of their post-season meeting. Kane was ejected from that contest for an altercation involving a referee.

That lead to a suspension that saw the Sharks forward miss out on the first three games of the NHL regular season. The Knights and Sharks met in the season opener and when asked about his feelings about Kane’s suspension, Reaves simply said he was “very disappointed.”

The on-going feud between the two players has made Kane a persona non grata in Las Vegas hockey circles. It would seem that he may not be very popular in other local circles after the gambling lawsuit by the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

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