Kane has drawn 12 penalties and LaBanc has drawn 7. Kane has taken 17 penalties and LaBanc has taken 8. Kane That's a penalty differential of -5 for Kane and -1 for LaBanc. So, Kane's penalty differential is 4 worse than LaBanc's. That's 4 more times he put us shorthanded without getting us on the PP in return. We could check offsetting penalties if you want but I don't think that matters as much as overall penalty differential.
Meanwhile, Kane has 12 even strength points and LaBanc has 10. Kane has 2 more even strength points than LaBanc. I'd like to hear your explanation as to how Kane's penalty differential, which is 4 worse than LaBanc's, is insignificant, while his even strength production, which is 2 points more than LaBanc's, is significantly less.
I'm not buying the luck argument either. Kane has historically been a very unlucky player, to the point where we might be able to conclude that it isn't just dumb luck but rather who he is. He's rocking an even strength oiSH% of 5.88%, while LaBanc is rocking an even strength oiSH% of 7.34%. Throughout his last two full seasons in Buffalo, Kane had an oiSH% below 7%, while LaBanc's current 7.34% is the only time in his career that he has had an wish% below 8%. Kane is always going to be more "unlucky" than LaBanc, and that's because LaBanc is a better playmaker and Kane just shoots from anywhere.
For the record, I'm not bringing these numbers up to pump LaBanc's tires. I think he's been real disappointing. I just brought the numbers to point out that it's hilarious how our whipping boy, who we are all pretty disappointed with, has as many assists, while on his ELC, as our 7 million dollar man has points. Other factors be damned, that looks awful on Kane.