Toronto Maple Leafs: Why Phil Kessel Must Go

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Mar 14, 2015; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Phil Kessel (81) awaits the start of play against the Vancouver Canucks during the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports

This article is most likely to make some fans’ blood boil so let’s get something out of the way quickly. Phil Kessel is one of the most gifted players that has ever worn the Toronto Maple Leafs logo on their chest. He is certainly the most talented player to play in this city since Mats Sundin.

Is he one of the most offensively explosive players in the NHL today? Of course. There will be no arguments contained in this article to suggest otherwise.

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As the Leafs set out to start something they have never done, a full-blown scorched earth rebuild, we need to ask ourselves one question. Does Phil Kessel belong on this team? Is this the kind of personality an organization wants in a dressing room filled with young players seeking direction? The answer to that question may have been provided by Kessel himself who has shown a steady decline in many areas in recent months.

I ask only one thing of anybody who is about to read ahead. Please keep an open mind. With that being said, let’s look at the different areas that may have thrown up a red flag for the Toronto Maple Leaf over the past few months. These same red flags are probably the same ones that are keeping teams away from making serious offers to the Leafs to acquire him.

Next: Coachability

COACHABILITY

Since Kessel’s arrival six seasons ago, there have been three head coaches that have now come and gone. Ron Wilson was at the helm for the first three years that Kessel was in Toronto before being fired near the end of 2011-12 season. He was replaced by former Stanley Cup winning coach Randy Carlyle. Carlyle’s tenure was even shorter than Wilson’s but he was able to get the current core of players into the playoffs during the lockout shortened 2013 season.

Earlier this year, when Carlyle was fired, former coach Ron Wilson had these harsh words to say about Kessel.

“You can’t rely on Phil,” Wilson said on TSN 1050 Radio’s Leafs Lunch. “When he’s not playing well, he’s a hard guy to get on board and get on your side. He shows obvious signs of brilliance but Phil’s problem – it’s pretty much the way he’s been through his career – he’s two weeks on and two weeks off. It’s just the way it is. He comes and goes and he gets emotional. He lets that effect his game and his relationship with other players. That’s what you have to coach.”

Wilson added….

“Some of the core players have failed under two or three coaches so it’s got to be the player’s fault. You’d have to surmise that some of them might be uncoachable.”

I am not a Ron Wilson fan and I never have been but what reason does he have to lie? The Toronto media jumped on Wilson’s suggestions and asked Kessel whether he was “hard to coach.” Kessel’s response was unexpected but showed frustration and a lack of maturity.

Next: Maturity

MATURITY

He’s 27 years old and not a kid anymore but we’ve seen some temper tantrums from him recently. The reaction in the video above happened after the Toronto Star’s Dave Feschuk asked him if he was “uncoachable.” Kessel responded by lashing out at the reporter in a way that wouldn’t look out of place in a high school locker room.

Later in the season, Kessel struck again when he told the media that they “should be ashamed of themselves” for their treatment of Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf. The latter was a headscratcher as he chose an odd time to confront the issue. (after a local tv station had allowed a tasteless tweet from a fan to go to air on trade deadline day) He also seemed to take shots at Leaf management asking “Did he (Dion) build this team?”

Less than three weeks later, Kessel erupted again. After Interim head coach Peter Horacek called the team out for their “lack of effort,” Phil was asked if the players were giving “all that they could give.” Kessel was visibly upset and answered each question like a young boy who was about to be sent to is room without dinner.

Perhaps the most questionable incident that happened has now become known as the infamous “stickgate.” After defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-2, the Leafs decided to abandon their traditional salute to the fans in which they raise their sticks to the sky in appreciation. This decision was seemingly a response to the fans’ disapproval in the previous game, an embarrassing 9-2 loss to the Nashville Predators, which included booing and jerseys being thrown on the ice.

Even worse, it was quite evident to anyone watching that the designer of the plan was Phil Kessel himself as he was clearly seen skating over to captain Dion Phaneuf and saying something to the Leaf captain. Immediately afterwards, they collected Cody Franson, who had already began skating to centre ice where the salute usually happened, and the team left the ice.

Much was made in the media about the team’s perceived mutiny and the Leafs shrugged it off one by one saying that they were just trying to “change it up a bit.” However, after continuous pressure from the media, the salute returned two nights later, after a 4-1 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

As Don Cherry said on Coach’s Corner, this whole episode should have never happened regardless of their reasoning. Unfortunately, it did and the Leafs on that one particular night left the ice looking like a spoiled Minor Bantam team. Unfortunately, the orchestrator was number 81 himself calling his character and maturity into question.

Next: Leadership

Apr 8, 2015; Columbus, OH, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs right wing Phil Kessel (81) against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena. The Jackets won 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

LEADERSHIP

“I expect you to bring it everyday. Every single day. And I expect you to be a man when you don’t. And own your own stuff. Period.” –Mike Babcock, May 21- Sportsnet

I know what you’re thinking. Phil isn’t that kinda player. He isn’t the type of guy that is comfortable in a leadership role. Leadership can be defined in many different ways though.

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I will agree that Kessel isn’t the kind of personality that should be wearing a letter on his jersey. He isn’t the guy that’s going to stand up in front of the team during a losing streak and change things with an epic speech.

What he does need to realize is that there are different kinds of leadership. There is a certain role you must accept when you are the highest paid player on the team. You lead by example by showing every other player on your team what it takes to be the best.

It has been suggested that Kessel is the last one on the ice and the first one off. Is that the kind of example you want your star player setting for the William Nylander and Mitch Marner’s that will soon become big parts of the big club? One can only wonder where Nazem Kadri might be right now had he had a Jonathan Toews or Steven Stamkos to set a proper example for him over the past few years.

Next: Fitness

FITNESS

“If you’re an everydayer… and you’re honest about your approach and your professional with the way you eat, the way you drink, the way you live. The way you live away from the rink. It shows when you come to the rink and the fans appreciate who you are.” –Mike Babcock, May 21- Sportsnet

Insert all the “cheeseburger” jokes you want in here. I’ve heard them all and seen the clever internet memes. The truth is, Kessel HAS gained weight since he was traded to Toronto in September of 2009. He was 21 then and just three years into his pro hockey career at that point.

The argument might be that ALL men gain weight as they get older. Sorry but that argument doesn’t work with professional athletes. Take a look at the photo of Phil taken on January 24 of this year at the 2015 NHL All Star Game. Now convince me that is the body of an $8,000,000 a year professional athlete. I’m no fashion aficionado but that is a man who is still wearing a sport jacket that may have fit him when he first joined the Maple Leafs. That was almost six years ago. It doesn’t fit anymore.

The video below is from September of 2009, the day he was introduced to the media as the newest Toronto Maple Leaf. There is no denying that Kessel looked fitter and healthier. Is it a thyroid problem as some have suggested? Who knows but there is no denying that Phil’s dedication to fitness has been called into question recently.

In September of 2014, reporters asked Kessel about his summer training regimen. It wasn’t exactly the type of answer you’d expect from one of the elite players in the NHL.

“Honestly, I skated maybe—I don’t want to tell you this—but I skated 10 times maybe all summer. I don’t talk hockey or have anything to do with hockey in the summer. I probably take a month off. I live in Florida in the summer, so I go down there and golf and fish and do that kind of stuff and get away, and then I’ll start working out again.” -Sportsnet

Anytime a player’s production drops considerably, as Kessel’s did this past season, every possible cause will be analyzed including his willingness to do the things necessary to stay in shape. Not including the lockout shortened season, Kessel had his lowest goal (25) and point (61) totals since his rookie year with the Boston Bruins back in the 2006-07 season. One has to wonder if the extra weight that Kessel has obviously been carrying around is to blame. It also makes his very nonchalant response about his off-season training methods that more disappointing.

Will Phil Kessel be a different person this summer after his disappointing 2014-15 season? That remains to be seen but a tweet from TSN’s Darren Dreger on Wednesday seemed to indicate just that.

Whispers of Phil Kessel returning to Toronto in July, perhaps, to work with Gary Roberts. Sounds like a good plan.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 29, 2015

What we do know is that Kessel will be in fact returning to Toronto in July if only to to run his new youth hockey camp. And even if he is planning to work with Roberts, that doesn’t mean he will be a Toronto Maple Leaf next year. It would be in Kessel’s best interests to be in shape next season regardless of what city he plays in.

Next: Dedication

DEDICATION

That’s a strong word isn’t it? I’m not questioning Kessel’s dedication to the game itself. There are no doubts that he loves playing hockey and is dedicated to the game. He has represented his country in international play on numerous occasions including the past two Olympic Games.

In 2006, while with the Boston Bruins, Kessel was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He missed only 11 regular season games before returning and was awarded the Bill Masterton Trophy following the season.

We all know what happens when Phil Kessel has the puck. He has the ability to change the game with one quick rush down the ice. His bullet shot can make a goalie look stupid in the blink of an eye. Is he dedicated to being a complete player though? The kind of player that you can count on in all situations in any kind of game?

Watch any game from the past season and you just might pull your hair out watching Kessel without the puck. He seems to change only when he’s tired and usually only after losing the puck in the offensive zone. Kessel was a -34 this past season and it doesn’t end there. He has been a minus player in all six of his seasons as a Toronto Maple Leaf including a -20 in the 2010-11 season.

In the past, Kessel’s defensive deficiencies have been overshadowed by his unbelievable puck wizardry but those days are over. He is under the microscope now and it isn’t looking good. Gone are the days of head coaches allowing him to play only one way. The new head honcho has guaranteed that everybody will bring it or they won’t be playing in Toronto.

Don’t get the wrong idea here. I am not “picking” on Phil Kessel. I am merely trying to remind and inform you of where we are in the “Phil Kessel era.” There are some who are suggesting that Mike Babcock can somehow “make it all better.” Maybe he can get through to Phil and make him the complete player we all wish that he could be.

Can that happen? I don’t know. Maybe it can but are the Leafs, an organization that is apparently looking for a fresh new start, going to take that chance? For argument’s sake, let’s say they do allow Phil Kessel to return to the Toronto Maple Leafs next season. At first, things look good. Kessel actually makes an effort in the off-season to get his body into shape. He is actually showing interest in playing a two-way game and Babcock seems to be getting through to him.

Then what happens at some point if it all goes sour? Kessel resorts back to the lazy one-dimensional player that he has shown to be for the first six seasons here. So what do you do now? Trade him? If anybody thinks his value is at an all-time low now just wait until that meltdown happens. What does Phil Kessel’s value become if it is determined that he can’t play for Mike Babcock? Nobody will touch this guy with a ten-foot pole wrapped in tinfoil if he shows the inability to play for yet another coach here in Toronto.

And make no doubt about it; unlike Wilson, Carlyle, and Horacek, Kessel will not win this time. This is Mike Babcock’s team. This past weekend after the draft was complete, the new Leaf coach spoke to the media. He was asked if he had spoken to the players and said that he had, although not in person.

“Anything (negative) that’s been going on, it’s going to be cleaned up. I told them straightforward, the No. 1 characteristic of being a Leaf is a good person, period. You don’t fit that, you’re not going to be here.”

He also added…

“We’re going to look after each other and make this a safe place to play and to play hard. You can count on that. Right now, we’re not going to be the most talented group and I have no problem with that. But we’re going to walk with our heads held high. We’ll train that way, practise that way, eat that way, sleep that way. We’re going to be Maple Leafs.”

The question remains… will Phil Kessel be one?

Be sure to check out my “MONDAY MORNING LEAF POINTS” column every Monday morning here at Editor In Leaf. Send all hate mail to retoronto71@gmail.com and please follow me on Twitter @robb_ellis

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