The Sharks were one of two NHL teams to issue statements directly attributed to their owners following George Floyd's death in Minneapolis police custody just over two weeks ago.
Hasso Plattner, the co-founder of German software giant SAP and the Sharks' majority owner for a decade, did not mention Floyd's name in the statement but said the team "[applauded Kane] for his rational and thoughtful response to the recent terrible tragedy" as the forward spoke out against police brutality and systemic racism in the days after Floyd died.
Kane, who is black, was named as the co-head of the newly formed Hockey Diversity Alliance on Monday, and the group seeks to "eradicate racism and intolerance in hockey.