Phil Kessel

Phil Kessel
Born	October 2, 1987 (1987-10-02) Madison, Wisconsin, USA
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	203 lb (92 kg; 14 st 7 lb)
Position	Right wing
Shoots	Right
NHL team Former teams	Toronto Maple Leafs Boston Bruins
National team	United States
NHL Draft	5th overall, 2006 Boston Bruins
Playing career	2006–present

Philip Joseph Kessel, Jr. (Phil the Thrill) (born October 2, 1987) is an American professional ice hockey forward and an alternate captain for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). Kessel is a product of USA Hockey's National Development Team and became that program's all-time leader for goals and points in his final 2004–05 year. Kessel finished his amateur career by playing collegiate hockey for the University of Minnesota in the WCHA. He was the fifth-overall pick of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, taken by the Boston Bruins. In his rookie season, he was awarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.

Junior career

Kessel had an outstanding 2004–05 junior season, one in which many NHL scouts ranked him as a prospect comparable to Sidney Crosby (and one of The Next Ones). Born in October, Kessel missed the 2005 NHL Entry Draft cutoff by only one month. However, in 2005–06, Kessel experienced several setbacks that hurt his ranking as a prospect. Considered the most talented player on the favored United States team in the 2006 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, he scored only one goal and the team finished in fourth. His college performance was less spectacular than expected; by season's end he was playing third-line minutes for the Minnesota Golden Gophers squad, though he did score 18 goals and finish with 51 total points.

Kessel was still viewed highly enough that he was drafted fifth overall in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston Bruins. Prior to the draft he dropped in ranking from first to second place among the North American skaters and in the final ranking he was ranked fourth among the North American skaters. At one point during his draft year he was projected to be the number 1 overall pick but was ultimately surpassed by Erik Johnson and then continued to drop.

Professional career

Boston Bruins

On August 17, 2006, the Bruins announced that they had signed Kessel to a 3 year entry-level contract worth the rookie maximum of $850,000.

On December 11, 2006, his family announced that Kessel was hospitalized for a reason unrelated to hockey. Later during the day, Bob Lobel, a sportscaster for WBZ-TV in Boston, confirmed that Kessel was diagnosed with a form of testicular cancer.

On December 16, 2006, Kessel was announced cancer-free. On January 5, 2007, he was assigned to Providence for conditioning purposes and then recalled on January 7. Kessel returned to the Bruins line-up on January 9, against the Ottawa Senators, after missing only 11 regular season games following cancer surgery.

Kessel with the Boston Bruins

Kessel was named to the 2007 NHL YoungStars Game which took place in Dallas, Texas, on January 23, 2007. He recorded a hat trick (including a unique powerplay with a game winning goal) and an assist during this game in a 9–8 Eastern Conference victory.

While Kessel was not among top rookies in goals or assists, he became second among rookies with four shootout goals (4 of 7). Each goal was a game-deciding one that brought his team a win.

On March 31, 2007, Boston Herald's author Stephen Harris reported that Kessel was voted by Boston writers as the team's candidate for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (for perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey). Later, on June 14, at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto, NHL announced that Kessel had been officially selected as the recipient of the 2007 Masterton award.

To start the Bruins' 2008–09 NHL season, Kessel scored the very first Bruins goal of the season on October 9, 2008, playing against the Colorado Avalanche during the first period of the Colorado team's home opener, that resulted in the Bruins 5–4 victory. Kessel closed out the regular season on a high note, scoring his second career hat trick in the April 12, 2009, 6–2 visitors' victory against the New York Islanders, and amassing the highest number of NHL regular season goals so far in his young career with 36, the most on the Bruins team for the season.

In the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Kessel would play an integral role in the team's playoff run, leading the team with 6 goals, before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference semi-finals in 7 games. After the playoffs, it was reported that Kessel would need off-season shoulder surgery, most likely caused during the March 10, 2009, 2–0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The surgery was successfully performed on May 21, 2009, with recuperation from the surgery causing Kessel to miss the start of the 2009–10 NHL season.

Toronto Maple Leafs

On September 18, 2009, the Boston Bruins traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he quickly signed a five-year, $27 million contract. The Leafs gave Boston their first and second round Entry Draft picks in 2010, as well as a first round Entry Draft pick in 2011. These picks turned to players Tyler Seguin, Jared Knight and Dougie Hamilton.

On November 3, 2009, Kessel made his debut as a Leaf against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Kessel had a total of 10 shots on goal in the game, a career high, however he was not able to record any assists or goals. Despite not recording any points, Kessel still received the third star of the game honor. During the game, he was the recipient of a clean, open ice hit from Lightning defenseman Mattias Öhlund; he left the ice for evaluation, but returned to action later that night as the Leafs fell to the Lightning 2–1 in overtime. Kessel scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf on November 7, 2009, in a 5–1 win over the Detroit Red Wings at the Air Canada Centre.

December 5, 2009 marked the first time that Kessel played against his former team, the Boston Bruins, at the TD Garden. Kessel's return to Boston was marked with thunderous taunting chants of his name by his former home crowd, along with a chorus of boos every time he had possession of the puck. Kessel was on the ice for the first three of the seven goals that Boston scored in their 7–2 victory. He finished the game a −3 plus/minus with 2 shots on the night. After the game Kessel said in a post-game interview on NESN that the fans' reaction "did not affect [him]". However it was the "worst game [he] had played in a while" and that he needed to "play better". However, on February 15, 2011, he scored two goals against his former team in a 4–3 Maple Leafs win.

On January 1, 2010, after NHL Winter Classic game, it was announced that Kessel, along with his Leaf team-mate Mike Komisarek, made the Olympic roster to represent Team USA at the 2010 Winter Olympics (However, Komisarek would miss the Olympics due to injury). In 6 games at the Olympics, Kessel tallied a goal and an assist as Team USA won a silver medal. Phil Kessel made the 2010–2011 All-Star Team, taken by Team Lidström as the final overall pick.

On April 6, 2011, Kessel had his third consecutive 30 goal season, scoring against the Ottawa Senators. He is currently amongst 8 other NHL players, including Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin, who have scored 30 goals or more in a season three times since the 2008–09 NHL regular season.

During the 2011-12 NHL season, Kessel scored his first hat trick as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct 8, 2011 against the Ottawa Senators. He would finish the month as the NHL's top scorer and was subsequently named first star of the month for October.

Personal life

Both of Kessel's parents were athletes: father Phil Kessel, Sr., a college quarterback, attended Northern Michigan University from 1976–1981, he was drafted by the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL), spending his first year on the injured reserve and then released. In 1984 Phil Sr. spent one season as the third quarterback with the Birmingham Stallions of the United States Football League. His mother Kathy ran track in college. Not only were his parents athletically inclined but the entire Kessel family features successful athletes. Kessel has an older cousin who plays in the NHL, David Moss, of the Calgary Flames. His brother Blake, a defenseman, who was drafted by the New York Islanders in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, in the sixth round, 166th overall, plays for the University of New Hampshire. Their sister Amanda also plays hockey, and was the top scorer, with six goals and 13 assists for the gold medal-winning Team USA, at the 2009 IIHF World Women's U18 Championship.

Awards and honors

• 2005: Bob Johnson Award at the USA Hockey Annual Congress (for excellence in international hockey competition during a specific season of play)
• 2005–06: WCHA Rookie of the Year, WCHA All-Rookie Team, MacNaughton Cup
• 2006–07: Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, Played in the NHL YoungStars Game
• 2010–11: Selected to play in 2011 NHL all-star game.
• 2011–12: NHL "First Star" of the Month of October with 18 points (10 goals and 8 assist) in 11 games played.
• 2011–12: Selected to play in 2012 NHL all-star game.

Records

• USA Hockey’s National Development Team's franchise record for most career goals: 104
• USA Hockey’s National Development Team's franchise record for most career points: 180
• USA Hockey’s National Development Team's single-season record for goals: 52 (shared with Patrick Kane)
• United States National U18 Team's All-Time leader for points (26), goals (16) and assists (10) in 12 games during 2004–2005 World Junior Ice Hockey U18 Championships

• Boston Bruins' franchise record for most game-deciding shootout goals in a career: 9
• The first NHL rookie to be honored with the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
• Tied with Ed Olczyk for the longest point streak by a U.S.-born player in NHL history (18 games). He had 14 goals and 14 assists, 28 points, on that run.

Milestones

• Played his first NHL game October 6, 2006, vs. Florida Panthers
• Recorded his first NHL point October 7, 2006, vs. Tampa Bay Lightning, assisting on a goal by Brad Boyes
• Scored his first NHL goal October 21, 2006, vs. Buffalo Sabres

• Scored his first NHL hat trick October 12, 2007, vs. Los Angeles Kings
• 100th NHL goal October 15, 2010, vs. New York Rangers
• 200th NHL point December 14, 2010, vs. Edmonton Oilers
• 100th NHL assist January 24, 2011, vs. Carolina Hurricanes
• 400th NHL game December 3, 2011, vs. Boston Bruins

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2001–02	Madison Capitols	Bantam AAA		86	176	110	286	—		—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Madison Capitols	Midget AAA		71	113	45	158	—		—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Development Program U17	NAHL		62	52	30	82	26		—	—	—	—	—
2004–05	Development Program U18	NAHL		47	52	46	98	35		—	—	—	—	—
2005–06	Minnesota Golden Gophers	WCHA		39	18	33	51	28		—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Providence Bruins	AHL		2	1	0	1	2		—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Boston Bruins	NHL		70	11	18	29	12		—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Boston Bruins	NHL		82	19	18	37	28		4	3	1	4	2
2008–09	Boston Bruins	NHL		70	36	24	60	16		11	6	5	11	4
2009–10	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		70	30	25	55	21		—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		82	32	32	64	24		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				374	128	117	245	101		15	9	6	15	6

International play

Medal record
Phil Kessel
Men's ice hockey
Competitor for the USA
Olympic Games
Silver	2010 Vancouver	Tournament
World Junior Ice Hockey U18 Championships
Silver	2004 Minsk	Tournament
Gold	2005 Plzeň	Tournament

Kessel plays for the United States in:

• 2004 IIHF World U18 Championships (All-Star Team)
• 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships
• 2005 IIHF World U18 Championships (Best Forward, All-Star Team, Leading Scorer)
• 2006 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (Leading Scorer)
• 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
• 2007 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
• 2008 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
• 2010 Winter Olympics

Kessel played for the United States in:

• Four Nations Cup U17 (November 7–9, 2003, Magnitogorsk, Russia), 1st place, recorded 8 points (4 goals, 4 assists) in 3 games
• Five Nations Cup U18 (February 10–13, 2005, Tjorn, Sweden), 1st place, recorded 6 points (5 goals, 1 assist) in 4 games

He also participated in two U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camps (2005, 2006)

International statistics

Year	Team	Event	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		Result
2004	United States	WJC18	6	7	3	10	6
2005	United States	WJC	7	4	2	6	2		4th
2005	United States	WJC18	6	9	7	16	2
2006	United States	WJC	7	1	10	11	2		4th
2006	United States	WC	7	1	1	2	2		7th
2007	United States	WC	7	2	5	7	6		5th
2008	United States	WC	7	6	4	10	6		6th
2010	United States	Oly	6	1	1	2	0
USA totals			53	31	33	64	26

External links

• Press releases:
  • Bruins sign Phil Kessel to multi-year contract. Aug 17, 2006
  • Phil Kessel Honored as 2007 Masterton Recipient. Jun 14, 2007
  • Leafs Obtain Kessel From Bruins. Sep 18, 2009
• Profiles:
  • Phil Kessel's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
  • Toronto Maple Leafs. Phil Kessel
  • National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA). Phil Kessel. Retrieved Nov 15, 2009
  • Minnesota Golden Gophers. Phil Kessel. Retrieved Aug 17, 2006
• USA Hockey:
  • US Hockey Report. USHR
  • 2008 USA Men's National Hockey Team Media Guide

Preceded by Matt Lashoff	Boston Bruins first round draft pick 2006	Succeeded by Zach Hamill
Preceded by Teemu Selanne	Winner of the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy 2006–07	Succeeded by Jason Blake