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Blackhawks’ Kane denies drinking problem speculation, admits embarrassment with image

Back in May, Patrick Kane descended on Madison, Wisconsin for a weekend of hard partying. You probably heard about his adventures there, which made Deadspin, created a meme, and raised some legitimate concern about where the Chicago Blackhawks' forward was at.

Granted, people go out of their way to photograph Patrick Kane in an inebriated state, so maybe it wasn't as bad as it looked. As Duncan Keith said, "It's almost like it's the thing to do now is to see him out, take pictures and follow him around with a video camera."

But still, Kane wasn't exactly making people work to get these photos, and some -- even some within the Blackhawks' organization -- expressed concern with yet another document of his hard-drinking ways. On Friday, Kane addressed the weekend and the rumours they created head on. From the Chicago Sun-Times:

"It was the end of the season, I was up for a good weekend with my friends and things probably got a little bit out of control," Kane said.

Does Kane believe he has a drinking problem?

"I don't think so," Kane said. "There's a lot of rumors that were made about those stories [in Madison] and different things like that. But it's something that I've put behind me and something [where] I don't really want to put myself in that position again. But, no, I don't think I do."

That's not exactly the firmest "no" we've ever heard, but Kane didn't sound like a man in denial, especially since he didn't shy away from admitting he needed to make some adjustments to his lifestyle anyway.

Kane admitted to embarrassment with his image, as well as the photos of his weekend in Madison. "The image that I have right now is something I can only strive to get better," he told Adam Jahns.

How much better? Kane mentioned that he'd like to be a role model to kids. So, a lot better.