Kessel signs long term extension (8 yrs, 64M, 8M AAV)

[Strangelove]

Everyone loves Kessel at around 8 mil for 8 years and why not?

Not everyone.

I have real qualms about locking the long-term future of this team into a combo of Kessel & Phaneuf, if he's the next on their list.  IMO each is too flawed to be the core of a real contender.

I agree with that to one extent or another but in a strict pay for performance sense of things I think this deal is about right.

The Kessel deal I'm more or less comfortable with, given his consistency.  But I'm much less comfortable recommitting to Phaneuf at or near 6.5 mil.  While he's capable of logging big minutes, his defence has been suspect for several seasons now, and you're never quite sure what you're going to get from him on offence.  He has a tendency to look lost for long stretches on the ice (game 7 being a perfect example) and is, for that reason, not the kind of guy I'm overly eager to have anchor the Leafs' back end.  Management seems to see things differently, however.

 

[Zee]

Bozak and JVR just tweeted a big "welcome back" to Kessel and congrats on his deal.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

and you're never quite sure what you're going to get from him on offence.

How so?  Since he's been a Leaf (not including the trade season) he's had seasons of .45 PPG, .54 PPG, and .58 PPG.

 

[Zee]

Kessel turns 26 tomorrow, he's just entering the prime of his career.  Given what i've seen from him the last few seasons I have no problem with this extension.  I fully expect him to be a top 10 player for the next few seasons.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

Bob McKenzie ‏@TSNBobMcKenzie 42m
Kessel's extension AAV with TOR will be $8M. There's a signing bonus up front and another one in what would be a potential lockout year.

The Leafs couldn't pony up an extra $100k a year? About as good as you can get. He wasn't getting a dime under $8mil.

 

[bustaheims]

and you're never quite sure what you're going to get from him on offence.

How so?  Since he's been a Leaf (not including the trade season) he's had seasons of .45 PPG, .54 PPG, and .58 PPG.

You and your facts and logic . . . ;D

 

[CarltonTheBear]

and you're never quite sure what you're going to get from him on offence.

How so?  Since he's been a Leaf (not including the trade season) he's had seasons of .45 PPG, .54 PPG, and .58 PPG.

Yeah, you never know how much better he's going to get after every season. Duh.

 

[Redleaf]

Kessel deal to be announced at morning skate

 

[TML fan]

Never in doubt.

 

[drummond]

With the cap going up, I consider 8M per as a steal. The free agents next year and year after that may get bigger bucks. Kessel is top player, injury free, quite consistent and slowly discovering his nasty side. He will thrive in TO. Glad to have him.

 

[Zee]

With the cap going up, I consider 8M per as a steal. The free agents next year and year after that may get bigger bucks. Kessel is top player, injury free, quite consistent and slowly discovering his nasty side. He will thrive in TO. Glad to have him.

Nice tweet by Down Goes Brown:

27m
A reminder to Sens fans that Bobby Ryan will be using the Kessel deal as a comparable next summer.

 

[Deebo]

Friedman says there is an NMC, limted NTC (8 team trade list submitted every year)

 

[Strangelove]

and you're never quite sure what you're going to get from him on offence.

How so?  Since he's been a Leaf (not including the trade season) he's had seasons of .45 PPG, .54 PPG, and .58 PPG.

You and your facts and logic . . . ;D

I'm well aware of the fact that he's produced. But I recall long stretches on the PP where he's been totally ineffective, just for example.  And even if my comment on his offence overstated things, whatever offence he provides does not do enough to compensate for his deficiencies in the Leafs' end and his tendency to make boneheaded plays at inopportune times.

Also, there's really no need to cheerlead each other's posts. I'm not sure anyone on the internet post-1995 has ever found that "you and your facts and logic" quip funny.  But whatever floats your boat I guess.

 

[Jalili]

With the cap going up, I consider 8M per as a steal. The free agents next year and year after that may get bigger bucks. Kessel is top player, injury free, quite consistent and slowly discovering his nasty side. He will thrive in TO. Glad to have him.

Nice tweet by Down Goes Brown:

27m
A reminder to Sens fans that Bobby Ryan will be using the Kessel deal as a comparable next summer.

And, unlike Kessel, Bobby Ryan actually has very strong ties to another organization outside of his own.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

and you're never quite sure what you're going to get from him on offence.

How so?  Since he's been a Leaf (not including the trade season) he's had seasons of .45 PPG, .54 PPG, and .58 PPG.

You and your facts and logic . . . ;D

I'm well aware of the fact that he's produced. But I recall long stretches on the PP where he's been totally ineffective, just for example.  And even if my comment on his offence overstated things, whatever offence he provides does not do enough to compensate for his deficiencies in the Leafs' end and his tendency to make boneheaded plays at inopportune times.

I just think it's unrealistic to expect there to not be sustained stretches where the PP appears ineffective with him there.  I would guess, other than MAYBE one or two d-men in the league, that this happens to most d-men throughout the season.  Even with his supposed long stretches of ineffectiveness offensively he's still been 12th and 10th in scoring for defensemen over that time.

I think you're vastly overstating his defensive issues, but that's a whole other kettle of fish for another thread, and something hard to quantify.

 

[princedpw]

All and all, I think this was one of the easiest contracts to predict. It was always going to be around 8 x 8 IMO.

I don't know. I think the market bears that out to some degree or another but I think it was a valid question as to whether or not the TSN read on him or the various statistical measurements that people here are citing would win out.

What would Brian Burke say? Would the difference at the end be all that far away from between 7.5-8.5 and 8 years? I don't think so. Kessel hasn't regressed, sorry plateaued, so who knows what he's capable of? I think he still has more goals to give.

Anyway, I think he was always getting at least 8 million.

I wasn't sure.  If Kessel scored slightly over a ppg this year, the cap goes back up to $72 and then he went UFA to the highest bidder, my best guess would be that he'd get 9.5 million from some team somewhere. It sounds crazy, but crazy is what consistently happens.

 

[Kin]

I wasn't sure.  If Kessel scored slightly over a ppg this year, the cap goes back up to $72 and then he went UFA to the highest bidder, my best guess would be that he'd get 9.5 million from some team somewhere. It sounds crazy, but crazy is what consistently happens.

I don't think that's too far off. I think the next time that a premium free agent hits the market, and for what it's worth I don't think that we've seen too many of them beyond Niedermayer going to the Ducks and Kovalchuk to the Devils over the course of the last 8 years, we're going to see something pretty interesting with regards to where the bidding goes.

 

[Stronger Than All]

does this link work?
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151906175210199&set=a.10150127246295199.327087.23648815198&type=1&relevant_count=1&ref=nf

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Cox really is a piece of work.

Don?t forget, it wasn?t that long ago that he was picked dead last in the all-star game draft, and the hockey world seemed to take enormous delight laughing at Kessel, Brian Burke and the Leafs, not necessarily in that order.

...

He?s like none of those players, and his battle readiness will continue to be questioned, as will his rep as a last-to-the-rink, first-off-the-ice player

What rep as last to the rink first off the ice?  I've never heard that before.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

What rep as last to the rink first off the ice?  I've never heard that before.

Nor have I.