Patrick Kane has grand jury hearing postponed: report

A grand jury hearing, scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, into the sexual assault allegations against Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane has been postponed, according to the Buffalo News, which cited three current and former law enforcement sources with knowledge of the case.

Since Aug. 2, Kane has been under police investigation in Hamburg, N.Y., after a woman reportedly accused him of sexually assaulting her at his lakefront mansion.

The 26-year-old is from Buffalo and his family still lives in town.

The reason for the delay, according to the News, involves the possibility of ongoing settlement talks. The grand jury comprises 23 people that would review all evidence in the case and vote on whether there was enough evidence to charge Kane.

Kane has had several things happen since the allegations surfaced, including:

• Not being invited to this week's annual NHL pre-season media tour.
• Being dropped in August as EA Sports' spokesman and cover boy for NHL 16 video game.
• Had his last name dropped by his junior team, the London Knights, as a possible name for a training camp squad.

On Friday, Brandon Faber, the Blackhawks' senior communications and community relations director, said he couldn't answer whether Kane would return to the team's training camp on Sept. 18.

A four-time all-star, Kane is scheduled to make $13.8 million US in the upcoming season, the first in an eight-year, $84-million US extension he signed last summer.

This is not the first time the 2013 Conn Smthye Trophy winner has been involved in an off-season incident. Kane pleaded guilty to a noncriminal charge of disorderly conduct after he and a cousin were accused of assaulting a Buffalo cab driver in 2009.