An underwhelming return for one of the most consistent scorers in the post-lockout era was further curtailed when the Pittsburgh Penguins advanced into the third round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, slotting themselves into bottom-four position on the NHL draft board.
But for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who based on last season's stat sheet so desperately needed to add, not subtract players of Phil Kessel's grade, the decision to extricate the offensive dynamo from their refurbishing structure shouldn't be one that's second-guessed.
There are myriad reasons why the introverted sniper is the perfect fit for these Penguins, not the Maple Leafs.
Kessel never failed in his function with Toronto. Five players scored more goals and only 15 racked up more points league-wide during his six seasons. He was paid to be an elite scorer and provided, in turn, apposite contributions.
Of course he wasn't without limitations. At his core Kessel remains an instinctive, one-dimensional attacking force, and a player suited to provide intermittent shocks to the system and hone in on defensive lapses, not spearhead a complete, responsible, dogged team effort. To put it in baseball terms, he's a changeup. So when the Leafs catered their entire scheme around this incomparable $8-million entity - or relied exclusively on the off-speed pitch - well, the opposition wasn't fooled by the offering.
Enter the Penguins, who have an enduring identity focused around one of the game's great players in Sidney Crosby, a championship pillar, a proven entity, and a leader at a premium position that isn't quite as readily neutralized by the opposition's top defenders.
But then, and even with Evgeni Malkin, team defenses are too good for opposing offenses to attack without multiple weapons in the arsenal. In Kessel, whose meshed wonderfully with two other new additions in Nick Bonino and Carl Hagelin, Pittsburgh boasts a blazing-fast, exceedingly-dynamic unintentional auxiliary unit - a trio really unlike anything in the league - for second- and third-tier defenders to fail in their attempts to game plan for.
And best of all, Kessel no longer has the face-of-the-franchise price tag; Toronto slashed that down by 15 percent.
Kessel's current situation was, and remains, an impossibility in Toronto.
But let's say the Leafs had hung on, allowing Mike Babcock the opportunity to shape the polarizing winger. Would the 25 goals and 60 points he would have ostensibly accounted for have been worth jeopardizing the chance to draft the No. 1 center they hope can anchor a title winner?
Besides that, the money, the previous acrimony, shortcuts remaining taboo, and the fact that all their top prospects are similarly offensive-minded, though, are reasons Kessel's career arc simply doesn't jibe with the Maple Leafs' timeline.
Auston Matthews (or Patrik Laine) may incrementally speed up the process, but the fact of the matter is that the Leafs are still cleaning out the attic, not competing for a championship.
If we're willing to give them a generous three-to-five-year window to compete, could they have counted on Kessel - who will have 10 years on his NHL body before the most cornerstone prospects burn an entry-level season - to still have the jump needed to gallop past Victor Hedman like he did in Game 3?
For the rebuild to work, Toronto's prospects must grow together, not fill in behind and needlessly waste what remains in the tank of one of the game's premier scorers. And one who finally has a vehicle to put those distinctive talents to use.
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Pavel Datsyuk's agent says his client hasn't agreed to play for SKA St. Petersburg.
Russian publication Sportfakt reported Friday that the 37-year-old Detroit Red Wings forward agreed to a two-year pre-agreement with the KHL club, which would likely be finalized after the ongoing World Championship.
Dan Milstein, Datsyuk's representative, told Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News that the report is inaccurate, and Datsyuk hasn't spoken to any other teams or members of the media.
Milstein expects Datsyuk and the Red Wings to discuss his future in mid-June, after the veteran returns from the tournament.
Datsyuk has one year left on his NHL contract at a cap hit of $7.5 million, a figure the Red Wings would still be responsible for because that deal was signed after he turned 35.
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The Anaheim Ducks signed defenseman Jacob Larsson to a three-year, entry-level contract Friday.
The Ducks selected the 19-year-old 27th overall in June's draft.
Larsson played one playoff game for the AHL's San Diego Gulls earlier this month after spending most of the season with Frolunda in the Swedish league.
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The IIHF is taking a cue from the NHL.
The rules for overtime and shootouts will change as of 2017, the international governing body for hockey announced Friday.
Preliminary round games will feature five minutes of 3-on-3 overtime if a game is tied after three periods, followed by a three-round shootout and tiebreakers if necessary.
Medal round games - except for gold medal matches - will include 10 minutes of 4-on-4 overtime in the event that they are tied after 60 minutes, followed by a five-round shootout and tiebreaking rounds if necessary.
Gold medal games that are tied after regulation will go to a 20-minute overtime period played at 5-on-5, with a five-round shootout (or more) if required.
The changes were approved at the IIHF's annual congress.
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The restructuring of the OHL's Flint Firebirds is essentially complete.
The junior club hired Ryan Oulahen as its new head coach Friday, adding former Philadelphia Flyers forward Eric Wellwood as assistant coach.
“Today’s announcement is a further piece in putting together a strong hockey operations staff for the Flint Firebirds,” OHL commissioner David Branch said in a statement.
“Their combined knowledge and experience will help develop the Flint Firebird players both on and off the ice.”
The organization was overhauled by the league after owner Rolf Nilsen was suspended and forbidden from conducting team business for five years last month.
Nilsen fired his previous coaching staff twice last season, reportedly as part of a dispute over his son's ice time.
Longtime junior coach and executive George Burnett was appointed general manager of the Firebirds earlier this week.
Oulahen spent the last six years as the lead assistant coach of the OHL's North Bay (nee Brampton) Battalion. Wellwood was an assistant with the Oshawa Generals for the last two seasons, serving behind the bench for the 2015 Memorial Cup champions.
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The Pittsburgh Penguins are ready for Game 4, as well as Phil Kessel's postgame interview.
Two days after leaving the hockey world in stitches with a hilarious postgame interview in which he mistakenly assumed that NBC analyst Pierre McGuire suggested he had bad breath, Kessel's stall was decorated with a giant bottle of Listerine and an assortment of gum.
For all that "bad breath"... pic.twitter.com/YDYfp7ABy1
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) May 20, 2016
Think this team's loose?
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The Toronto Maple Leafs hit the ice on their centennial season this fall. With it, the franchise's Stanley Cup drought will stretch into its 49th season.
But with a slew of young talent in the system and the No. 1 overall pick in their possession, it appears a proper road map is finally in place to bring Lord Stanley's Mug back to Toronto.
These three pairings can help make that happen:
The Leafs' last first-round pick to tally 60 points while still in Toronto: Wendel Clark, way back in 1993-94. The Leafs' last first-round pick to net 30 goals with the Buds: also Clark, in 1996-97. Since then, players drafted in the first round by Toronto have put together more 30-goal seasons for the St. Louis Blues (3) than the Leafs (0).
Years of bad drafting, win-now trades, and poor grooming of top prospects left the team without much in the way of homegrown talent. An organizational commitment to re-stock cupboards that were once bare has filled the system with solid prospects. At the head of the class are Nylander and Marner, who will be tasked with being pillars of the team's developing core.
There's a decidedly different feel around the club this offseason than there's been under past regimes. Shanahan has the ship pointed in the right direction, and it won't be long before that reflects in the on-ice product.
Babcock's arrival has played a major role in the change in culture. The players' immediate buy-in to Babcock's system and philosophies offers great promise for a quick transition from a team that lost 53 of 82 games to one that ascends up the Atlantic Division standings.
Despite all the positive strides, there's still work to be done in assembling a championship roster in Toronto. A bevy of draft picks and cap space in the years ahead offer the tools needed to build a team Babcock can mold into a champion.
The necessary injection of talent begins June 24 with the No. 1 overall selection in the entry draft. Matthews is the logical choice to stand at the head of Toronto's deep 2016 draft class. Supplementing that group with a prize free agent like Stamkos in the next year or two can help accelerate the rebuild.
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Steven Stamkos' chances of suiting up in Friday's game have gone from slim to none.
The Tampa Bay Lightning captain told reporters he won't play in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference final against the Pittsburgh Penguins, according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times.
"I think there's a big difference between playing through pain and playing with your life at risk," Stamkos said.
He gave himself a five-percent chance of playing Friday when asked about his status at Thursday's practice, adding there's a "real possibility" he may not play again for the Lightning this season following vascular surgery to treat a blood clot condition that's kept him out for the last seven weeks.
The 26-year-old center took part in Friday's optional skate and has been practicing with the team this week, but he hasn't played in a game since March 31.
"As I said since day one, I wouldn't be working if I didn't think there was a chance," Stamkos said. "There's just also a chance it may not."
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