Phil Kessel

=Phil Kessel=

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaPhilip Joseph Kessel, Jr. (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.

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Contents
[hide] *1 Junior career
 * 2 Professional career
 * 2.1 Boston Bruins
 * 2.2 Toronto Maple Leafs
 * 3 Personal life
 * 4 Awards and honors
 * 5 Records
 * 5.1 Milestones
 * 6 Career statistics
 * 7 International play
 * 7.1 International statistics
 * 8 References
 * 9 External links
 * }

=Phil Kessel= From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaedit] 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[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. 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.

edit] 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.[3]

On December 16, 2006, 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. EnlargeKessel 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.

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).[6] 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,[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 the March 10, 2009, 2–0 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The surgery was successfully performed[8] on May 21, 2009, with recuperation from the surgery causing Kessel to miss the start of the 2009–10 NHL season.[9]

edit] 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.[10]

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).[11] 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.

In 2011-2012, Kessel was once again named to be an All-Star, and was to be on Team Chara in the 8th round of the Fantasy Draft by assistant captain and linemate Joffrey Lupul.

edit] 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.[12]

edit] 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)[13]
 * 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.

edit] 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.

edit] 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

edit] International play
Kessel plays for the United States in: Kessel played for the United States in: He also participated in two U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camps (2005, 2006)
 * 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
 * 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