Phil Kessel: Nice guy, tries hard, loves the game

[CarltonTheBear]

A very nice profile on Phil Kessel to read before the season gets going:

http://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/phil-kessel-nice-guy/

Possibly my favourite part:

Kessel scored two highlight-reel, coast-to-coast goals against Germany at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge in St. John?s, N.L., but in the third period he abandoned the backcheck, giving Germany a scoring chance. Quinn, who?s now head coach at Boston University, took Kessel aside and gave him a speech about becoming a complete player at the next day?s practice. ?Well,? Kessel told him, ?if they score, I?ll just go get another.? Quinn could only laugh. ?Get away from me Phil,? he told him. ?It was absolutely true,? the coach says now. ?And that summarizes Phil to a T: It was that easy.?

Also interesting to hear why Phil doesn't like talking to the media:

In Kessel?s mind, there is a moment when he stopped talking to the press. As in, really talking. (The truth, if you ask any Leafs beat reporter, is that he never really started.) Kessel says his words were taken out of context in 2012 at a Sunday practice when he made a comment about ?change? being a good thing, referring to new linemates. The press interpreted this to mean he wanted a trade. ?I was like, ?This is insane! What is going on??? Kessel says. ?After that especially, I?m like, ?Don?t talk to me.??

And a nice little story about Phil away from the rink:

The Kessel family spends a lot of time in Florida, where Phil Jr. owns a condo and a house. About four years ago, they met a Toronto-area family by the pool in the condo complex. Two young boys were in the water, and one was diving for his Spider-Man toy, retrieving it and tossing it to the bottom of the pool, diving for it again and again. The other has cerebral palsy and epilepsy, and couldn?t get to the bottom. So Phil Kessel put five-year-old Dylan on his back and dove to the bottom of the pool and they got Spider-Man together. The three of them horsed around in the water for two hours. Now, every off-season, Kessel hangs out with the kids. They bring him Skittles. He takes them fishing. There?s that big heart. ?People don?t see that side of Phil,? Kathy says.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Pretty sound reason for not liking to talk to the media.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

Pretty sound reason for not liking to talk to the media.

I remember that incident too. Still, here's hoping he makes some more appearances going forward, because every time he's spoken to the media lately it's been great.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Pretty sound reason for not liking to talk to the media.

I remember that incident too. Still, here's hoping he makes some more appearances going forward, because every time he's spoken to the media lately it's been great.

I think out of any player in the NHL, his answers to the media are most similar to what I imagine mine might be like if I just answered them literally.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

Pretty sound reason for not liking to talk to the media.

I remember that incident too. Still, here's hoping he makes some more appearances going forward, because every time he's spoken to the media lately it's been great.

I think out of any player in the NHL, his answers to the media are most similar to what I imagine mine might be like if I just answered them literally.

Except when Paul Hendrick is asking him a "question".

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Pretty sound reason for not liking to talk to the media.

I remember that incident too. Still, here's hoping he makes some more appearances going forward, because every time he's spoken to the media lately it's been great.

I think out of any player in the NHL, his answers to the media are most similar to what I imagine mine might be like if I just answered them literally.

Except when Paul Hendrick is asking him a "question".

"Can you talk a bit about how great the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise is?" is how I imagine most of his questions are conceived.

 

[Kin]

He became the face and the hope of a franchise that hasn?t won the Stanley Cup since the Beatles were touring, owners of the NHL?s longest drought, a team that had missed the playoffs four straight seasons.

The Leafs last won the cup in '67. The Beatles famously ended their last tour in '66. I realize it's a trivial point but why go out of your way to shoe-horn in something like that when it isn't factual? There are lots of famous things that happened in 1967. Even Beatles related things.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

"Can you talk a bit about how great the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise is?" is how I imagine most of his questions are conceived.

I think it's more like "The Toronto Maple Leafs franchise is one of the most renown sports teams in the entire world... Can you talk a bit about how great the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise is?"

 

[WhatIfGodWasALeaf]

I really loved that, thanks for posting.

 

[Kin]

I wasn't sure where to put this but I just wrapped up listening to the Marek vs. Wyshynski podcast today and, unsurprisingly, they talked a lot about the Carlyle stuff and the Leafs in general and they had Chris Johnston from Sportsnet as their guest and they were telling some Kessel stories from various unnamed sources(a former teammate, I think a coach) and they're just...really weird. Just about what he's like as a teammate and some of the things he does.

Anyways, I think all three guys are good reporters and pretty well sourced and I think it's worth a listen as it's a pretty good analysis on the state of the club:

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/marek-vs--wyshynski-podcast--randy-carlyle-unemployment-line-edition-190046327.html

 

[ZBBM]

Examples por favor.

 

[Highlander]

Kessel is a true genius and talent, and like most with these attributes is either sullen and withdrawn or in Phil's case a bit eccentric, a lot shy, probably a really nice guy as in the story with the kidz.  Under the microscope in Toronto, but the best pure sniper we have had since Mogliny and in my opinion a much better sniper that Mogliny.  Let him score goals and put him with a stud Centre and responsible two way left winger and let him rip. Bozak clearly is not the answer to the Kessel conundrum.  I keep saying to my son, imagine this line; Roberts/Sundin/Kessel. 
Ouch for the opposition, once we start winning again and Phil is potting one or two a night all the complaining and criticism will retreat to the wayside. 

 

[Kin]

Examples por favor.

I don't know if I could do them justice. They're stories and not mine. I'm not saying they're mind boggling or anything but just that it shines a little bit of light on what he's like as a teammate.

 

[Zee]

Kessel is a true genius and talent, and like most with these attributes is either sullen and withdrawn or in Phil's case a bit eccentric, a lot shy, probably a really nice guy as in the story with the kidz.  Under the microscope in Toronto, but the best pure sniper we have had since Mogliny and in my opinion a much better sniper that Mogliny.  Let him score goals and put him with a stud Centre and responsible two way left winger and let him rip. Bozak clearly is not the answer to the Kessel conundrum.  I keep saying to my son, imagine this line; Roberts/Sundin/Kessel. 
Ouch for the opposition, once we start winning again and Phil is potting one or two a night all the complaining and criticism will retreat to the wayside.

I dunno man,  Roberts and Sundin are too old to play now in my opinion. Worth a shot though. [emoji14]

 

[sickbeast]

I personally think that too many people blame kessel and Phaneuf for all of the leafs problems. Those two guys are the least of the team's problems. The leafs have absolutely no defense. That is their big problem IMO. Not Phaneuf and kessel.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Awesome, that Feschuk clip goes on longer than originally published.

Feschuk: It's been suggested to that you're a difficult guy to coach is there any truth to that?

Kessel: I don't think so but that's a weird question for you to ask on a day like that, you know your coach got fired--

Feschuk: Well you're the best player on the team and if the coach just got fired...

Kessel: You think it's my fault? Is that what you're saying?

Feschuk: I'm saying that people are saying you're difficult to coach.

Kessel: Is that what you're saying?

Feschuk: I'm asking a question, are you difficult to coach?

Kessel: I don't think so. I play eh. This guy is such an idiot here. He's always been like that here.

Feschuk: It's not me saying this stuff!

Kessel: How many bad articles have you had? I don't see any of these other guys disrespecting the players like you are.

Feschuk: Can I talk to you for one second?

Kessel: I've never seen someone disrespect the players in this organization, not me, just in general.

 

[Peter D.]

Awesome, that Feschuk clip goes on longer than originally published.

Feschuk: It's been suggested to that you're a difficult guy to coach is there any truth to that?

Kessel: I don't think so but that's a weird question for you to ask on a day like that, you know your coach got fired--

Feschuk: Well you're the best player on the team and if the coach just got fired...

Kessel: You think it's my fault? Is that what you're saying?

Feschuk: I'm saying that people are saying you're difficult to coach.

Kessel: Is that what you're saying?

Feschuk: I'm asking a question, are you difficult to coach?

Kessel: I don't think so. I play eh. This guy is such an idiot here. He's always been like that here.

Feschuk: It's not me saying this stuff!

Kessel: How many bad articles have you had? I don't see any of these other guys disrespecting the players like you are.

Feschuk: Can I talk to you for one second?

Kessel: I've never seen someone disrespect the players in this organization, not me, just in general.

Here's the video of it.  I stumbled across it last night when trying to find the original clip.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvpY3i-UcCg (the YouTube imbedding isn't working for me)

 

[Courtnall]

I personally think that too many people blame kessel and Phaneuf for all of the leafs problems. Those two guys are the least of the team's problems. The leafs have absolutely no defense. That is their big problem IMO. Not Phaneuf and kessel.

There are only 6 players left from the 2010-2011 roster. Phaneuf, kessel, bozak, Kadri, reimer and lupul. I think it's safe to say they ARE part of the problem.

 

[hockeyfan1]

Ron Wilson on Kessel:

One of the players that Wilson said was difficult to coach was top scorer Phil Kessel.

?Phil?s problem, and I think it?s pretty much how Phil?s been his whole career, is that he is two weeks on and two weeks off,? Wilson said.

Wilson added that Kessel?s erratic play causes him to become emotional, which makes it difficult for a coach to get his message across.

?You can?t rely on (Phil). That?s just the way he is. It affects his game and his relationship with players,? he explained.

Wilson said he never seriously considered benching Kessel, and added that it would take a coach with ?pretty big balls? to do so. According to Wilson, the fear among coaches would be dealing with management in the event the team lost a game because Kessel was on the bench.

In the short term, Wilson says the coaching change will get the players? attention but they will eventually revert back.


http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/wilson-some-of-leafs-core-group-is-uncoachable/

 

[hockeyfan1]

Milbury 'rips' Kessel:

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/mike-milbury-calls-phil-kessel-a-pain-in-the--behind-013302878.html