NASHVILLE -- For some people, this will never just be a hockey story.
For some people, this marvelous point streak by Chicago Blackhawks star winger Patrick Kane -- which reached 24 games after his controversial goal here Thursday night -- and his sparkling regular season will be about everything but the hockey.
More than four months after Kane was alleged to have raped a young woman at his Buffalo area home and more than a month after local prosecutors sharply questioned the veracity of the claims against Kane in deciding not to lay criminal charges, the incident remains a shadow trailing after the league's leading scorer.