from Craig Custancde of ESPN,

To me, if Kane continues to play this well all season long, the interesting debate happens after the season. If he hadn't gotten hurt last season, Kane certainly would have been in the Hart conversation, although it would have been hard to imagine anyone prying it away from Canadiens goalie Carey Price.

Now, Kane's arguably in the Hart Trophy driver's seat, but will voters be comfortable voting for a player who was the center of a rape investigation all summer long? Kane maintained his innocence and charges were dropped because of a lack of credible evidence. So, is that it? Does any of that factor in when it comes time to turn in a vote?

It's still a long ways away, but at some point that may become a question voters have to consider.

more from the ESPN hockey guys on Kane...