Phil Kessel: But I was right

"But I was right."

The stigma surrounding Phil Kessel just won't go away.

It's funny how in the media business the egos and stubbornness of some get in the way of the ultimate goal of being objective and honest.

And there's no NHL player that is a better case study of this phenomenon than Kessel.

This isn't limited to the media and can be seen in all walks of life. People want to be right. And the bigger the ego, the more desire to be right. It can be argued that from an NHL standpoint, no city has a bigger ego than Toronto.

Brian Burke became the President and GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs in November of 2008. At the time the Leafs were in shambles, the farm was empty and the big club had nobody to build around.

It was unanimously agreed upon in Toronto that a complete rebuild was needed. Finish at the bottom, draft high and build a foundation of players within. Everyone thought this was the way to go. Except the man in charge of actually making the decisions, Mr. Burke.

In 2009, Burke traded for Kessel (who at the time couldn't come to terms as an RFA with the Bruins) sending two first round picks and a second round pick in exchange.

"How could he do this! A rebuild must done! He's wrong, I'm right."

And just like that the stigma surrounding Kessel began and instead of finding the positives in his game, the media went on a crusade to tear Kessel's game apart because: "they were right."

To both Burke and Kessel's detriment, Kessel missed the first month and a half of the 2009 season and the Leafs went on that year to finish 29th in the NHL, earning the second overall pick. Had Toronto managed to pickup one more "loser" point along the way, it's likely they swap draft rankings with Florida, Boston ends up with Erik Gudbranson and this conversation never happens.

But Boston drafts a franchise player in Tyler Seguin and the crusade on Kessel continues. "See, Seguin is the centre the Leafs need, Burke messed up, look, I was right."

From that moment on, it didn't matter what Kessel was going to accomplish on the ice. The rebuild was flawed to those watching from the outside and Kessel (and to a certain extent Dion Phaneuf) represented five years worth of mistakes made by Burke.

Kessel scores 37-goals... "But I was right."

Kessel plays four straight seasons without missing a game.... "But I was right."

Kessel scores four goals, six points and is the best forward in the Leafs' seven game loss to the Bruins in the playoffs... "But I was right."

Kessel is approximately a point a game player during his entire tenure with Toronto... "But I was right."

From day one, there was no winning for Kessel in Toronto. He was put in a situation where the one way to succeed was to win the Stanley Cup and to do that single handedly is close to impossible.

If people really think that Kessel is the reason for Toronto's failures as a franchise, it's because they are focusing on the "but I was right."

Trade Kessel for Patrick Kane during the 2009-2010 Chicago Blackhawks run and he's got a cup. Or replace Marian Gaborik for Kessel last season for the Los Angeles Kings and you have the same thing.

Kessel is one of the best offensive players in the league and perhaps most under appreciated.

Getting rid of him, instead of providing him with a gifted centre (something he's never had) would be a mistake because you simply will not get adequate return on the dollar.

If he ends up with a team that has the potential to win it all, he'll be able to hoist the cup.

And I'll be able to tell you, "I was right."

- Mitchy

Falling off the map

The Montreal Canadiens came from behind to beat the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 last night at the Bell Centre. 

Watching the Flyers up close, it's sad to see Vincent Lecavalier logging time on the third or fourth and looking like a shadow of his former self. 

Philadelphia looks the fool for giving him a five year, 22.5 million dollar contract just two years ago. 

The thing is, Lecavalier isn't the only player to fall off the map, quickly and rapidly. 

Here are the top five players still active that just don't have it anymore. 

5. Dany Heatley:

At one point a 50-goal scorer and one of the most lethal shooters in the league. Now 34-years-old, Heatley has played in only six NHL games this season, while playing most of his season with Norfolk of the AHL. 


4. Scott Gomez:

Everyone in Montreal still cringes when they hear the name. Gomez, a former rookie of the year and 2-time Stanley Cup Champions has found a resurgence of sorts back in New Jersey. But after the massive contract in New York, Gomez's skill set decreased rapidly to the point where in Montreal people were counting the days since his last goal. 

3. David Clarkson: 


Clarkson is on the list, but I don't know if he was ever "good." His best season came in 2011-12, when he scored 30-goals for the New Jersey Devils. The Leafs broke the bank and gave Clarkson a 7-year, 36 million dollar contract. He has 10-goals on the year and has been a healthy scratch for the past two games. 



2. Vincent Lecavalier: 

It's amazing to think that teams lined up to offer Vincent Lecavalier a contract after he was bought out by the Tampa Bay Lightning. He's got seven goals on the year and has been been a healthy scratch on numerous occasions by coach Craig Berube. It's a long way from when he was one of the best players in the NHL.



1. Alex Semin:Nobody knows what happened to this guy. Got a contract and lost his desire to compete? Semin with the Carolina Hurricanes has been an absolute disaster and isn't even comparable to the other guys on the list. Five years ago, Semin scored 40-goals for the Washington Capitals. Just two goals this season and he's been a healthy scratch quite often. Semin signed a five-year contract extension worth $35 million

It doesn't matter

The Montreal Canadiens lost to an inferior opponent... again

But it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. 

Including tonight's 3-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres at the Bell Centre, 46 per cent of the Habs regulation losses have come to teams outside of the playoffs. 

"At the beginning of the game, in the first period, we weren't alert," said Canadiens' coach Michel Therrien

For whatever reason, Montreal can elevate their game when they play optimum opponents, however they're just as capable as dumb-ing things down and coming out flat when the competition is inferior. 

"It's unfortunate we didn't do it for 60 minutes but it's not like we were horrible the rest of the game it was just a couple of bounces here and there," said Canadiens' forward Max Pacioretty.  

Here's the thing. In the playoffs when it matters, the Canadiens won't be playing against inferior opponents and every game will have a high intensity. 

It would be much more concerning if the Canadiens were beating up on the poor teams but couldn't keep up against the top teams, specifically in the East. 

Everyone knows the identity of this team by now. They need to get good goaltending and timely scoring or they don't win. Game in and game out, they get both and that's why the team is a contender for the Stanley Cup.

Tonight against the Sabres, they didn't get either of the two ingredients to their recipe of success, so it's not shocking that they lost. Carey Price was sub-par and up front the Habs didn't challenge a vulnerable Buffalo defense. 

"Sometimes, some teams just give you trouble and they (Buffalo) are one of them," said forward David Desharnais who was the Canadiens' best forward on Tuesday night. "We're having a tough time and we got to prepare better and be ready." 

With three days off and another weak/non-playoff team, the New Jersey Devils coming to the Bell Centre Saturday, one would expect them to show up with a valiant effort.

.

So long as they don't look ahead to the Bruins, who they play on Sunday. 

- Mitchy