Phil Kessel
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| Position | Center/Winger |
| Shoots | Right |
| Nickname(s) | Phil The Thrill[1], Special K[2] |
| Height Weight |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg/12 st 12 lb) |
| NHL Team | Boston Bruins |
| Nationality |  United States |
| Born | October 2, 1987 , Madison, WI, US |
| NHL Draft | 5th overall, 2006 Boston Bruins |
| Pro career | 2006 – present |
Philip Joseph Kessel Jr. (born October 2, 1987, Madison, Wisconsin) is an American professional ice hockey forward for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League.
Phil 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 junior career by playing collegiate hockey for the University of Minnesota in the WCHA. He was the 5th pick of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, taken by The Bruins. In his rookie 2006-07 NHL season he was awarded by the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
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[edit] Playing Career
Kessel had a fantastic 2004-05 season, one in which many NHL scouts ranked him as a prospect comparable to Sidney Crosby[3] (and one of The Next Ones[4]). 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 favoured 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 worse than expected; by season's end he was only playing third-line minutes.
However, Kessel was still viewed highly enough that he was drafted 5th 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 fifth among the North American skaters.
On August 17, 2006, The Bruins announced that Phil signed a multi-year entry-level contract, reportedly 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 in the region of Boston, confirmed that Phil was diagnosed with a form of testicular cancer.[5]
On December 16, 2006, Phil was announced cancer-free. On January 5, 2007, he was assigned to Providence for conditioning purposes[6] 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.
Phil 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.[7]
While Phil 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 Phil Kessel was voted by Boston writers as the team's candidate for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (for perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey). [8] Later, on June 14, at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto, NHL announced that Phil had been officially selected as the recipient of the 2007 Masterton award.
His first shootout goal of the 2007-08 NHL season came on October 20, 2007, playing in Boston against the New York Rangers, and was the only goal scored in that game. He repeated that feat against the Rangers in Boston on January 19, 2008, as a game-winning shootout goal. Once again, on February 8, 2008 Kessel scored the only shootout goal in an "away" game against the Buffalo Sabres, winning the game with a 3-2 "come-from-behind" score for the Bruins.
[edit] Personal Life
His parents were both good athletes: father Phil Kessel Sr., a college quarterback, attended Northern Michigan University from 1976-81, he was drafted by the Washington Redskins of the NFL spending his first year on injured reserve and then released; mother Kathy ran track in college.
Phil has an older cousin that plays in the NHL, David Moss, of the Calgary Flames. His brother Blake, a defenseman, was drafted by the New York Islanders in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, in the 6th round, 166th overall, now playing for the University of New Hampshire Wildcats. ; their sister Amanda also plays hockey.
[edit] Awards & Honors
- 2005: Bob Johnson Award at the USA Hockey Annual Congress (for excellence in international hockey competition during a specific season of play)[9]
- 2005-06: WCHA Rookie of the Year, WCHA All-Rookie Team
- 2006-07: Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, Played in the NHL YoungStars 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 career deciding shootout goals: 9
- The first NHL rookie to be honored with the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
[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 game December 12, 2007, vs. Atlanta Thrashers
[edit] Career Statistics
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | ||
| 2001-02 | Madison Capitols | B AAA | 86 | 176 | 110 | 286 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2002-03 | Madison Capitols | M 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 | 22 | 28 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2006-07 | Providence Bruins | AHL | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | E | 2 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2006-07 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 70 | 11 | 18 | 29 | -12 | 12 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 2007-08 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 82 | 19 | 18 | 37 | -6 | 28 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | ||
| NHL Totals | 152 | 30 | 36 | 66 | -18 | 40 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | ||||
[edit] International Play
| Medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| World Junior Ice Hockey U18 Championships | |||
| Silver | 2004 | USA | |
| Gold | 2005 | USA | |
Played 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
Also 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
Participated in two U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camps (2005, 2006)
[edit] International Statistics
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | Places |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | United States | WJC18 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 2nd |
| 2005 | United States | WJC | 7 | 4 | 2 | 6 | -1 | 2 | 4th |
| 2005 | United States | WJC18 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 1st |
| 2006 | United States | WJC | 7 | 1 | 10 | 11 | E | 2 | 4th |
| 2006 | United States | WC | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7th |
| 2007 | United States | WC | 7 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 5th |
| 2008 | United States | WC | 7 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 6th |
| United States Totals | 47 | 30 | 32 | 62 | 19 | 26 | |||
[edit] References
- Press releases:
- In the Spotlight. John McGourty, NHL.com Staff Writer Kessel's the '06 draft's wild card. Jul 17, 2006
- Bruins News. Bruins sign Phil Kessel to multi-year contract. Aug 17, 2006
- Phil Kessel Honored as 2007 Masterton Recipient. Jun 14, 2007
- Profiles:
- Boston Bruins. Phil Kessel. Retrieved 25 Jun 2007
- National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA). Phil Kessel
- Minnesota Golden Gophers. Phil Kessel. Retrieved 17 Aug 2006
- Other information:
- Bish of Bish's Blog, is John Bishop. He is the beat reporter for BostonBruins.com. Bish's Blog. Retrieved 23 Sep 2007
- Boston Herald
- Updates and Insights from Globe Sports Writers. Bruins Blog
- USA Hockey:
- US Hockey Report. USHR
- 2006 USA Men's National Hockey Team Media Guide. Retrieved 17 Aug 2006
[edit] Notes
- ^ Phil The Thrill. CBC.
- ^ Cocky Kessel brings big game and mouth to NHL/Special K. SI.com - Writers - Allan Muir (2006-08-18).
- ^ Future Greats and Heartbreaks, Gare Joyce, 2007, pg. 34-35 (footnote)
- ^ The Next One. INCH (2004-07-06).
- ^ Bruins' Kessel Diagnosed With Cancer. CBC (2006-12-11). Retrieved on 2007-07-03.
- ^ Boston Bruins Assign Phil Kessel to Providence Bruins. Boston Bruins (2007-01-05).
- ^ East triumphs in YoungStars shootout. NHL (2007-01-23).
- ^ Candidate for the Masterton. Boston Herald (2007-03-31). Retrieved on 2007-07-03.
- ^ Phil Kessel captured the Bob Johnson Award. INCH (2005-05-27). Retrieved on 2007-07-03.
| Preceded by Teemu Selänne |
Winner of the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy 2007 |
Succeeded by current |
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