“Kane is attempting to become only the third player to come back to the NHL from the invasive hip operation, following defenceman Ed Jovanovski and centre Nicklas Backstrom. Jovanovski played only 37 games afterward, and Backstrom recently stepped away from the Washington Capitals 47 games into his attempt amid concerns about how his artificial left hip was holding up, with a return this season unlikely.”
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/nhl-red-wings-sign-patrick-kane-1.7043000
So if Kane makes it to the end of the regular season he will be ahead of the curve.