Toronto Maple Leafs

Philip Joseph Kessel, Jr. (born October 2, 1987), is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Toronto Maple Leafs of theNational Hockey League (NHL). Kessel is a product of USA Hockey National Team Development Program 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 theUniversity of Minnesota in the WCHA. He was the fifth-overall pick of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, taken by the Boston Bruins. In his rookieseason, he was awarded the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for overcoming testicular cancer and continuing to play.Kessel plays internationally for the United States, and represented them between 2003-2010. At the 2010 Winter Olympics Kessel played in 6 games, recording a goal and an assist en route to a silver medal. At the 2014 Winter Olympics Kessel played in 6 games, recording 5 goals and 3 assist en route to a fourth place finish for USA. Kessel was named the tournament's top forward, and was also named to the tournament all star team.Kessel had an outstanding 2004–05 junior season, one in which many NHL scouts ranked him as a prospect comparable to Sidney Crosby[1] (and one of The Next Ones).[2] 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, although he led the tournament in points with 11. His college performance was less spectacular than expected; by season's end he was playing third-line minutes for theMinnesota 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.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.[3] Five days later, on December 16, Kessel was announced cancer-free. On January 5, 2007, he was assigned to Providence for conditioning purposes[4] 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 BruinsKessel 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.[5] 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.At the conclusion of the season, 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) after battling testicular cancer.[6]Then, during the 2007 NHL awards ceremony at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto, NHL announced that Kessel had been officially selected as the recipient of the 2007 Masterton award.To open the 2008–09 NHL season, Kessel scored the first Bruins goal of the season, playing against the Colorado Avalanche in a game 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,[7] 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 a 2–0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The surgery was successfully performed[8] during the off-season, with recuperation from the surgery causing Kessel to miss the start of the 2009–10 NHL season.[9]Toronto Maple Leafs[edit]On September 18, 2009, the Boston Bruins traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs, in exchange for a 2010 first-round pick, a 2010 second-round pick, and a 2011 first-round pick.[10] Immediately afterward, the Leafs signed him to a five-year, $27 million contract.However, Kessel was sidelined for the first month of the season with a shoulder injury incurred the year before that required surgery.[11] Finally, on November 3, 2009, Kessel made his much-anticipated 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, and falling to the Lightning 2–1 in overtime, Kessel still received the third star of the game honor. Kessel scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf four days later, in a 5–1 win over the Detroit Red Wings at the Air Canada Centre.[12]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.After the 2010 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 the2010 Winter Olympics (However, Komisarek would miss the Olympics due to injury).[13] In 6 games at the Olympics, Kessel tallied a goal and an assist as Team USA won a silver medal.On April 2, 2011, Kessel had his third consecutive 30 goal season, scoring against the Ottawa Senators.[14] He is currently amongst 8 other NHL players, including Sidney Crosbyand Alexander Ovechkin, who have scored 30 goals or more in a season three times since the 2008–09 NHL regular season.Kessel had another of his patented great starts to the 2011–12 NHL season, scoring his first hat trick as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs in just their second game of the season. He would go on to finish the month as the NHL's top scorer and was subsequently named first star of the month for October. That season, Kessel was once again named to be an All-Star, and was selected to Team Chara in the 8th round of the Fantasy Draft by assistant captain and linemate Joffrey Lupul.On February 6, 2012, Kessel crossed the 300 point plateau after having a 3 point night against the Edmonton Oilers.[15] The next day, Kessel hit the 30-goal mark for the fourth straight time (third straight as a Maple Leaf) scoring against Ondrej Pavelec of the Winnipeg Jets. Later that month, Kessel continued to set milestones, scoring his 65th point of the season (breaking his old career-high) in a 2–1 loss to the San Jose Sharks.[16]An NHL player's poll conducted by Sports Illustrated and released in February 2012 named Kessel "the easiest (player) to intimidate" in the league.[17] Kessel was named by 15% of NHL player respondents while Vancouver's Daniel and Henrik Sedin were next with 8%. The results were based on 145 NHL players who responded to Sports Illustrated's survey.[18] The poll drew controversy from many, including then Leafs GM Brian Burke due to the inflammatory nature of the question and which players were polled (i.e. no one in the Leafs' or Canucks organizations agreed to have players complete the survey).In another player survey, this one by The Hockey News, Kessel was ranked as the 16th best player in the NHL by his peers. The results in this survey were based on responses from 5 players from each of the 30 NHL teams.[19] Players were not allowed to vote for members of their own team.On March 31, 2012, Kessel scored his 37th goal of the season in a 4–3 win over the Buffalo Sabres beating his career high of 36 set with the Boston Bruins. He would go on to finish the season with 37 goals and 82 points, both new career highs, and both placed him 6th in the league.[20]Kessel began the 2012–13 NHL season with his longest goal drought to begin a season at 10 games, finally bumping the slump with the game-winning goal against the Winnipeg Jets on February 7, 2013.On April 20, 2013 in a 4–1 win against the Ottawa Senators where Kessel was able to contribute two assists, he and the Leafs clinched a playoff spot. This marked the first time Kessel had made it to the playoffs since his move to the Maple Leafs and ended a seven season playoff drought for the club.To conclude the 2012–13 NHL season Kessel scored 10 goals and 7 assists for 17 points over his last 10 games to retake the scoring lead for the Leafs, leading the team in goals, assists and points for the second consecutive year. Kessel would go on to finish 7th in league scoring posting his second consecutive point-per-game season.On October 1, 2013, Kessel officially signed an eight-year contract that will pay him an average of $8 million annually through the 2021-22 NHL season.Between the week of Oct 21 - Oct 27, Kessel found the back of the net in all 3 Toronto games. First, he recorded his fourth career hat-trick, including the game-winner in a 4-2 victory of the Anaheim Ducks. Kessel was then able to score in Toronto's next game, a 5-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. He concluded the week by recording a goal and an assist in a 4-1 victory over Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. For his efforts during the week, Kessel was named Second Star of the Week after leading the NHL with 5 goals scored in that timeframe.[21] Kessel continued his successful week with a 2 goal, 2 assist effort against the Edmonton Oilers in a 4-0 Maple Leafs victory.[22]After the 2014 NHL Winter Classic Toronto victory over the Detroit Red Wings (3-2 in a shootout), it was announced that Kessel, along with his Leaf team-mate James van Riemsdyk, had been named to the United States Men's Olympic hockey roster for the 2014 Winter Olympics.[23]On February 1, 2014, Kessel recorded his fifth career hat-trick, which was also his 30th goal of the season, marking the fifth time he has had a 30+ goal season in the NHL.On February 15, 2014, Kessel scored another hat trick, this time for the United States men's national ice hockey team in a game against Slovenia during the 2014 Winter Olympics.[24] He finished with 5 goals, 3 assists, 8 points in 6 games, becoming Leading Scorer of the competition, and was named to the tournament All-Star Team, earning Best Forward trophy, while Team USA loss a bronze-medal game against Finland 0-5.