Evander Kane is set to jump right into the Edmonton Oilers lineup.

Kane and Oilers general manager Ken Holland confirmed Friday that the winger will play Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens.

The game will mark Kane's first in the NHL since May, 12 2021, when he last played with the San Jose Sharks. He appeared in five games with the AHL's San Jose Barracuda this season, scoring two goals and adding six assists.

“I’m ready to go," Kane said Friday.

Kane signed with the Oilers on Thursday, just under a month after his contract was terminated by the San Jose Sharks in the fourth year of a seven-year, $49 million deal he signed in May of 2018.

"I felt this was going to make us a better hockey team," Holland said Friday.  "...It's an important time for the Edmonton Oilers and it's an important time for Evander Kane."

Thursday's signing came as the NHL announced Kane would not be disciplined for a COVID-19 protocol breach. The NHL suspended Kane in October for 21 games for allegedly submitting a fake COVID-19 vaccination card. When that suspension ended, the Sharks placed Kane on waivers and sent him to the Barracuda. 

The Vancouver native is a veteran of 12 NHL seasons split between the Atlanta Thrashers/Winnipeg Jets franchise, Buffalo Sabres and Sharks. He has 264 goals and 242 assists in 769 regular-season games since being drafted No. 4 overall in 2009.