So, about Phil Kessel...

[GhostofPotvin29]

Getting back to the article for just a second.  I've never played hockey on an organized level, so appreciate those who have played and are familiary with the variuos systems, to chime in.

I'm not sure how this writer explains the fact that this guy scored in the top 5 in scoring the past few years - with primarily the same line mates?  What has changed? The only thing that has changed is the change in the system, where the Leafs, purposefully, moved away from run and gun (1 and done) rushing style to a more possession based (which based on results, they aren't very good at).  So is he saying that Kessel is a rusher, and that this new system is flawed specifically for Kessel?  If so, then wasn't Carlyle right, and Horachek wrong (from a strictly results perspective)?

The writer then blames Kessel's slump based on the fact that the leafs have the puck less...is this even true in the new system?  In fact, under carlyle, we had some of the worst possession numbers in the history of life, and yet he was scoring at a top 5 pace.  So that can't be it...can it?

The writer then blames linemates (or that "the collective group isn't capable")...but his linemates (TOR21 and TOR42), are for the most part...the same, aren't they?  How are they any less capable than last year?  Also, how does the writer explain's Kessel's last 15 games of the year from last year?

And a bit off topic, but why can't he just call him Kessel instead of TOR81?

The article was essentially saying that Kessel is tuned to a certain rhythm in the game (which appears to be blowing the zone early to catch defenders flatfooted). The new system, on top of making him think more (which slows him down), preaches a different approach that Kessel hasn't fully adjusted to. The timing is off and the puck isn't going where Kessel is used to it being.

He scored at a 42 goal pace under Claude Julien, not exactly known as a loosey-goosey coach when it comes to systems and responsibility.

 

[Highlander]

Heard that Quinten Tarentino is making a new movie "Kill Phil"  guaranteed great box office in Ontario.

 

[Heroic Shrimp]

It's been almost 24 hours since we've all argued about Phil Kessel, so I figured I'd throw some more wood into the fire (and actually have the discussion in a proper thread for a change )).

Darryl Belfry posted some very interesting thoughts on Kessel this morning. For those of you who don't know, Belfry is one of the most well-known performance coaches in the league. His camp, Pro Playmakers, has worked with Crosby, MacKinnon, Kane, Tavares, Duchene, and even David Clarkson! Full disclosure, he was also hired by the Leafs as a Skill Development Consultant in December. You could consider him biased if you'd like, but he breaks down and discusses loads of NHL-related stuff on his twitter account so it's not like the Leafs have a muzzle on him. His handle is @belfryhockey for anyone wishing to follow him. Anyway, this is what he said about Kessel:

The sustained losing phenomenon I find as fascinating as sustained winning. I meant to post this when TOR81 was embattled with the Toronto media with respect to challenges to his/and the teams collective perception of a lack of effort/work ethic.

As sustained losing elongates through the season the effect on your top players is most fascinating. If you take a player like TOR81, who is among the elite snipers of his class and has made a living scoring goals because of perfect reads of the timing of the pass and when to engage his blistering speed down the right side and snapping a rocket instride ... what happens to him when the team struggles is fascinating.

The fascinating part is his compensations to get the puck. When you are in sustained losing, your team has the puck significantly less than when you are winning, same with chains of successful passes and sustained individual possession times. A skilled scorer like TOR81 goes shift after shift defending in his own end and not getting the puck at all. The coaches are exploring him to play with more structure, the fans want to see him chase down loose pucks or force turnovers, but his instinct is manufacture a chance in direct alignment with his instinct and asset base. He reads the game from a different perspective. However, when the team is in prolonged losing, the collective trust and confidence of the group bottoms out and the game all of a sudden feels faster and the plays are now rushed, the checking feels suffocating and the little passes that came so easy are now nearly impossible.

What does TOR81 do? Rather what should he do? Should he play with more structure and patiently await a chance to occur from a defensive posture? Does he chase some pucks down and look to force a turnover? Does he default to his instincts?

TOR81 tries desperately to default to his instincts, so he reads the game for chances to time a rush, but the collective group isn't capable - so pucks go off the glass, passes get lost & pucks get turned over. So now as he defaults to his instinct he misses chances to jump because he loses trust the puck is coming, so he hesitates and the chance is lost.

When the shift is over, he realizes that all he did was defend in his own end - or worse stand around waiting for a chance to jump that never came, and the chances he did have, he missed because he doesn't trust that the puck will get to him. In the back of his mind he hears whispers of staying instide the team structure, so now he worries if he jumps and doesn't get the puck he has blown the zone early.

What does he do? He must stay disciplined to executing the right play regardless of result. To feel the game from his instintual perspective. If he doesn't do that, he falls out of habit, loses his timing and further detaches himself from his habit base.

The inner conflict is fascinating as these players navigate their way through sustained losing, their character is actually revealed in their stubborness of their habit base. Therein lies the disconnect and why he is exacerbated when his work ethic is called into question. From the press box all you see is a player floating around ... from the bench, you see a guy distracted from his defensive responsibilities, but from the eyes of the player, you see over concentration and hesitations that manifests into frustration.

This is why players like TOR81 are at odds, he isn't the type of player who drives offense on his own, he specializes in timing which is dependent on certain recurring reads ... that have all of a sudden become less recurring.

For players lower on the depth chart, none of this really applies, they don't have to adjust their game in any way, but for an elite goal scorer - who relies on reading off others, this is one of the more fascinating studies of mental toughness and the number of variations that toughness is interpreted... depending on perspective and understanding.

For TOR81, I'm certain he can articulate all of this much more eloquently and with greater detail than I, but his willingness ... well that comes back to trust.

Now, I'm not excusing Kessel's play over the past couple of months, I just think that this provides a bit of insight into how a player like Phil thinks and sees the game when he's playing in this type of situation, and why in general it's difficult to properly assess/judge players (star players in particular) in a losing environment.

TL;DR  Less goals = less effort, amirite?

 

[brothert]

I watched Phil live last night. He looks capable, the skating is good but there is zero chemistry between the three of Bozak, Kessel,JVR. All 3 of them tried multiple solo rushes which were closed down easily. Kessel on these rushes has some dangerous shots that loungo lost but Bozak and JVR hadn't even entered the zone yet. Kessel looks so much faster than the other two. All three are soft though. JVR had two glorious chances to plaster a guy coming out of the Florida zone and opted not to do it

 

[WhatIfGodWasALeaf]

Problem with some of this "reasoning" is that even before Carlyle was fired, the top line was often hemmed in their own end for entire shifts, multiple times per game. Their possession stats improved a lot (for a while, at least) under Horachek but the goals dried up. Now maybe part of that was because they were "cheating" under Carlyle, which led to more good offensive opportunities, so the scoring rate was higher. Less cheating now = fewer good scoring chances (I think that's obvious from the games) but they're still not good defensive players...so even though they are back in the defensive zone, opponents still tend to control the play there.

The sheer arrogance here is astounding.

Some people just gotta grind that axe.

 

[Chris]

Problem with some of this "reasoning" is that even before Carlyle was fired, the top line was often hemmed in their own end for entire shifts, multiple times per game. Their possession stats improved a lot (for a while, at least) under Horachek but the goals dried up. Now maybe part of that was because they were "cheating" under Carlyle, which led to more good offensive opportunities, so the scoring rate was higher. Less cheating now = fewer good scoring chances (I think that's obvious from the games) but they're still not good defensive players...so even though they are back in the defensive zone, opponents still tend to control the play there.

The sheer arrogance here is astounding.

Some people just gotta grind that axe.

Why don't you offer your interpretation of the article and the past 40 games, rather than attack others? Talk about arrogance...

 

[WhatIfGodWasALeaf]

Problem with some of this "reasoning" is that even before Carlyle was fired, the top line was often hemmed in their own end for entire shifts, multiple times per game. Their possession stats improved a lot (for a while, at least) under Horachek but the goals dried up. Now maybe part of that was because they were "cheating" under Carlyle, which led to more good offensive opportunities, so the scoring rate was higher. Less cheating now = fewer good scoring chances (I think that's obvious from the games) but they're still not good defensive players...so even though they are back in the defensive zone, opponents still tend to control the play there.

The sheer arrogance here is astounding.

Some people just gotta grind that axe.

Why don't you offer your interpretation of the article and the past 40 games, rather than attack others? Talk about arrogance...

I have offered my opinion on the Phil Kessel situation more than once. I don't feel the need to turn every thread into one where I beat a dead horse.

If you don't feel like looking through my posts, I'm on the same side of the issue as Potvin, Nik, Carlton and Busta.

 

[Coco-puffs]

Getting back to the article for just a second.  I've never played hockey on an organized level, so appreciate those who have played and are familiary with the variuos systems, to chime in.

I'm not sure how this writer explains the fact that this guy scored in the top 5 in scoring the past few years - with primarily the same line mates?  What has changed? The only thing that has changed is the change in the system, where the Leafs, purposefully, moved away from run and gun (1 and done) rushing style to a more possession based (which based on results, they aren't very good at).  So is he saying that Kessel is a rusher, and that this new system is flawed specifically for Kessel?  If so, then wasn't Carlyle right, and Horachek wrong (from a strictly results perspective)?

The writer then blames Kessel's slump based on the fact that the leafs have the puck less...is this even true in the new system?  In fact, under carlyle, we had some of the worst possession numbers in the history of life, and yet he was scoring at a top 5 pace.  So that can't be it...can it?

The writer then blames linemates (or that "the collective group isn't capable")...but his linemates (TOR21 and TOR42), are for the most part...the same, aren't they?  How are they any less capable than last year?  Also, how does the writer explain's Kessel's last 15 games of the year from last year?

And a bit off topic, but why can't he just call him Kessel instead of TOR81?

The article was essentially saying that Kessel is tuned to a certain rhythm in the game (which appears to be blowing the zone early to catch defenders flatfooted). The new system, on top of making him think more (which slows him down), preaches a different approach that Kessel hasn't fully adjusted to. The timing is off and the puck isn't going where Kessel is used to it being.

He scored at a 42 goal pace under Claude Julien, not exactly known as a loosey-goosey coach when it comes to systems and responsibility.

1.  Marc Savard >>> Tyler Bozak.

2.  Julien and Kessel didn't really get along... Probably due to differences of opinion on Kessel's handling of said responsibility.

 

[Highlander]

Patrick you forgot to mention me with Potvin, Nik and Carlton. This horse is so dead its attracting flies now. Can't we move on at this point.

 

[Chris]

Patrick you forgot to mention me with Potvin, Nik and Carlton. This horse is so dead its attracting flies now. Can't we move on at this point.

This is a Kessel-specific thread started by one of your own "group"...if you don't want to discuss Kessel anymore, why are you posting in this thread?

 

[Kin]

I'm not sure how this writer explains the fact that this guy scored in the top 5 in scoring the past few years - with primarily the same line mates?  What has changed? The only thing that has changed is the change in the system, where the Leafs, purposefully, moved away from run and gun (1 and done) rushing style to a more possession based (which based on results, they aren't very good at).  So is he saying that Kessel is a rusher, and that this new system is flawed specifically for Kessel?  If so, then wasn't Carlyle right, and Horachek wrong (from a strictly results perspective)?

To some extent but I think that what's been exposed post-Carlyle is just how poorly this team is constructed for playing the sort of hockey that will eventually lead them somewhere good. If Carlyle, and his advocates, want to count it as a win that his system took this bunch to mediocre, rather than tragically awful, places then they can but that's when it would be worth noting that a lot of this roster was shaped by what Carlyle wanted and didn't so, at best, it's a hollow victory.

The writer then blames Kessel's slump based on the fact that the leafs have the puck less...is this even true in the new system?  In fact, under carlyle, we had some of the worst possession numbers in the history of life, and yet he was scoring at a top 5 pace.  So that can't be it...can it?

The writer then blames linemates (or that "the collective group isn't capable")...but his linemates (TOR21 and TOR42), are for the most part...the same, aren't they?  How are they any less capable than last year?  Also, how does the writer explain's Kessel's last 15 games of the year from last year?

But I think you sort of hit on the fundamental point here. It seems like most people want there to be a convenient answer for why Kessel isn't scoring and there being one thing to blame, whether it be linemates or Kessel's own deficiencies or whatever, and what this guy is saying if I read it right, is that there's some truths to all of it and there is no one simple explanation for what's went wrong with his game.

If you read it the way I do one of the things that sticks out is that he's saying  that the sort of player Kessel is means he's more affected by the rhythms of his teammates than most and when things are going badly, it will disrupt what he does well more than most. Considering that "gone badly" is a bit of an understatement for the funk the whole team has fallen into it would then follow that Kessel's own slump will be more pronounced.

I didn't read it as a vindication of Kessel or a condemnation. I don't think he was looking to only "blame" certain things. Just give a bit of insight into just how Kessel could look as lost as he has the last few months without resorting to tired cliches.

 

[skrackle]

Brian Burke thought he was going to sign the Sedin twins in their UFA year of 2008 or 09, whenever it was. Then, he was going to trade Thomas Kaberle for Phil Kessel.

But it didn't work out quite that way, did it? Instead, Kessel has come in with the baggage of being part of an ill-advised trade. He has played with Tyler "found wallet" Bozak as his centerman for most of his time with the Leafs instead of the Sedins. Kessel and Bozak have clicked together at times, but not in a way that's building toward team success. No matter what numbers Kessel has put up as a Leaf, it's always been in a vacuum. There's not enough else happening to make Kessel's scoring mean anything.

The rest of the team has been patch-worked together year by year and finally it's coming to a crashing halt. It's not at all surprising that it's happening now.

Kessel is the best player on the Leafs right now, but he's never been the right player to build a team around. Neither is Phaneuf. The best case scenario for the Leafs is to find a way to move these guys on to teams who could really use them.

 

[Damian]

Hey Phile...this is Dave......https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSet6htnVcQ

 

[Leaflifer]

Patrick you forgot to mention me with Potvin, Nik and Carlton. This horse is so dead its attracting flies now. Can't we move on at this point.

This is a Kessel-specific thread started by one of your own "group"...if you don't want to discuss Kessel anymore, why are you posting in this thread?

Post only if you agree with crowd. Unless, of course, your so arrogant as to disagree.

 

[dappleganger]

Brian Burke thought he was going to sign the Sedin twins in their UFA year of 2008 or 09, whenever it was. Then, he was going to trade Thomas Kaberle for Phil Kessel.

But it didn't work out quite that way, did it? Instead, Kessel has come in with the baggage of being part of an ill-advised trade. He has played with Tyler "found wallet" Bozak as his centerman for most of his time with the Leafs instead of the Sedins. Kessel and Bozak have clicked together at times, but not in a way that's building toward team success. No matter what numbers Kessel has put up as a Leaf, it's always been in a vacuum. There's not enough else happening to make Kessel's scoring mean anything.

The rest of the team has been patch-worked together year by year and finally it's coming to a crashing halt. It's not at all surprising that it's happening now.

Kessel is the best player on the Leafs right now, but he's never been the right player to build a team around. Neither is Phaneuf. The best case scenario for the Leafs is to find a way to move these guys on to teams who could really use them.

To me, the problem has always been the 2nd line. This year, the second line started out as Lupul-Kadri-Kozun. Not good enough and it's squarely on Nonis. There was basically a question mark for a second line winger.

Up until Carlyle was fired the Leafs first line scored as well as any first line in the league, better than most, but they had their issues. We needed a tough, strong, physical and talented second line and it didn't happen.

Did I mention the Leafs defense was atrocious? It didn't have to be but the players couldn't put it together. Nonis gets a wash on that one.

 

[slapshot]

Getting back to the article for just a second.  I've never played hockey on an organized level, so appreciate those who have played and are familiary with the variuos systems, to chime in.

I'm not sure how this writer explains the fact that this guy scored in the top 5 in scoring the past few years - with primarily the same line mates?  What has changed? The only thing that has changed is the change in the system, where the Leafs, purposefully, moved away from run and gun (1 and done) rushing style to a more possession based (which based on results, they aren't very good at).  So is he saying that Kessel is a rusher, and that this new system is flawed specifically for Kessel?  If so, then wasn't Carlyle right, and Horachek wrong (from a strictly results perspective)?

The writer then blames Kessel's slump based on the fact that the leafs have the puck less...is this even true in the new system?  In fact, under carlyle, we had some of the worst possession numbers in the history of life, and yet he was scoring at a top 5 pace.  So that can't be it...can it?

The writer then blames linemates (or that "the collective group isn't capable")...but his linemates (TOR21 and TOR42), are for the most part...the same, aren't they?  How are they any less capable than last year?  Also, how does the writer explain's Kessel's last 15 games of the year from last year?

And a bit off topic, but why can't he just call him Kessel instead of TOR81?

I think you are essentially correct, they are trying to put a square peg in a round hole now. They are trying to take a rush type players and turn them into two-way players.

What this guys is saying is something like 700 words or more is that Kessel looks for people to set him up on the fly and to try to score goals or set up goals, which he can do in spades. But when asked to play a different system he gets lost. Is that the player's fault or a system fault, probably some of both. One might say a guy like Patrick Kane plays like Kessel but still fits in with the Blackhawks, who play a pretty decent two-way game. But he also has a superior supporting cast in Toews, Hossa, Kane, Seabrook and others. Plus one of the best coaches in the game in Quennville. The Leafs appear to be committed to moving away from rush type offence to more of a two-way game, but it is obvious personnel changes are required to make that work. I think the transition, though painful, has revealed something about the character of a number players, which ultimately helps in the "evaluation" Shanahan has been talking about. How these players react to change and adversity is telling. Through it all, I think Rielly, Gardiner, Kadri, Booth, Pannik (even Polak before he was hurt) and a few others have played well, if not better. Can't say much for the guys we were supposed to count on. On the positive side, I think if the Leafs are patient, they can still get some decent return for guys like Kessel, Phaneuf, Bozak and Lupul if they choose to trade them all. I didn't throw JVR into that mix because I think change or circumstance or personnel will do him some good and he hasn't been around as long as the rest. Looks like the Marlies will make the playoffs if they can win today. And, once the Leafs season ends, thankfully, they can bolster the Marlies playoff chances by returning some guys there like MacWilliams, Kozun, Smith and I guess Bailey.
On the Booth-Kessel scrap, I only wish players would jump in like that when a fellow teammate is roughed up by an opposing player on the ice.

 

[slapshot]

I watched Phil live last night. He looks capable, the skating is good but there is zero chemistry between the three of Bozak, Kessel,JVR. All 3 of them tried multiple solo rushes which were closed down easily. Kessel on these rushes has some dangerous shots that loungo lost but Bozak and JVR hadn't even entered the zone yet. Kessel looks so much faster than the other two. All three are soft though. JVR had two glorious chances to plaster a guy coming out of the Florida zone and opted not to do it

I've been totally baffled by Horachek's stubborn persistence to go with them as a trio, when they've been producing zero. I mean isn't this an opportunity to see if some chemistry could be developed elsewhere. I mean how many games in a row has Kadri ever been paired with Kessel? I'd put all three of them on different lines to see what happens...

Booth Kadri Kessel (make them play together)
JVR  Komarov Lupul
Panik  Bozak Kozun
Lindstrom Carrick Bailey

 

[slapshot]

Brian Burke thought he was going to sign the Sedin twins in their UFA year of 2008 or 09, whenever it was. Then, he was going to trade Thomas Kaberle for Phil Kessel.

But it didn't work out quite that way, did it? Instead, Kessel has come in with the baggage of being part of an ill-advised trade. He has played with Tyler "found wallet" Bozak as his centerman for most of his time with the Leafs instead of the Sedins. Kessel and Bozak have clicked together at times, but not in a way that's building toward team success. No matter what numbers Kessel has put up as a Leaf, it's always been in a vacuum. There's not enough else happening to make Kessel's scoring mean anything.

The rest of the team has been patch-worked together year by year and finally it's coming to a crashing halt. It's not at all surprising that it's happening now.

Kessel is the best player on the Leafs right now, but he's never been the right player to build a team around. Neither is Phaneuf. The best case scenario for the Leafs is to find a way to move these guys on to teams who could really use them.

I concur entirely

 

[hockeyfan1]

Brian Burke thought he was going to sign the Sedin twins in their UFA year of 2008 or 09, whenever it was. Then, he was going to trade Thomas Kaberle for Phil Kessel.

But it didn't work out quite that way, did it? Instead, Kessel has come in with the baggage of being part of an ill-advised trade. He has played with Tyler "found wallet" Bozak as his centerman for most of his time with the Leafs instead of the Sedins. Kessel and Bozak have clicked together at times, but not in a way that's building toward team success. No matter what numbers Kessel has put up as a Leaf, it's always been in a vacuum. There's not enough else happening to make Kessel's scoring mean anything.

The rest of the team has been patch-worked together year by year and finally it's coming to a crashing halt. It's not at all surprising that it's happening now.

Kessel is the best player on the Leafs right now, but he's never been the right player to build a team around. Neither is Phaneuf. The best case scenario for the Leafs is to find a way to move these guys on to teams who could really use them.

This idea of building a team around a player, be it a franchise player or your best player, etc., has been done by teams to a certain extent, but not completely or totally.

Take the 1980s Cup-winning Islanders team.  Sure they had scoring sniper Mike Bossy, who as we know, was often called a "pure scorer."  Bossy was no checker (even though he did get checked -- the eventual cause over the years of his back problems), and he more often than not waited for Trottier to pass him the puck.  As dangerous and precise as Bossy was with the puck (whether he was fed the pass or picked up the puck himself),  the Islanders at the time had a very well-balanced team with solid goaltending, solid defence, a solid group of two-way forwards and of course some exceptional talent as well as mentioned.  Plus, not to mention an excellent system incorporated by Arbour & his assistants.

Take the Cup-winning Gretzky-led Oilers of the '80's.  Gretzky used to feed his teammates/linemales a multitude of passes,  many them missed.  All these potential goals & scoring opportunities missed.  So the team began to put in place a system and players who could not only assimilate with Gretzky's style of play, but also those who could adapt and provide the team with what it needed to create a balanced system.  The Oilers would go on to have solid netminding, solid defence, a solid group of two-way forwards including incredible #99 himself.

Remember how Mats Sundin was able to make any of his teammates look like  scoring geniuses?  No, the Leafs never built around Mats, but they could adapt to him and let him do his thing.

Which is why to rebuild the team around Kessel is doubtful on the direction the Leafs seem to be taking.  As we've seen, the they have figuratively risen and fallen oommensurate with Kessel's offensive prowess these past two seasons and now all that's remained of it.  New system, difficult for a one-dimensionsal such as Phil to adapt to.  If the Maple Leafs had had a well-balanced system and team instead of a rag-tag group as you mention, perhaps then having Kessel doing what he does best, scoring goals while being paired with a goad set of quality linemates could then be the exception.

As things stand, IMHO with the Leafs in rebuilding mode, it shouldn't come as no surprise to anyone if #81 will no longer be a Leaf come next season.

 

[cw]

Brian Burke thought he was going to sign the Sedin twins in their UFA year of 2008 or 09, whenever it was. Then, he was going to trade Thomas Kaberle for Phil Kessel.

But it didn't work out quite that way, did it? Instead, Kessel has come in with the baggage of being part of an ill-advised trade. He has played with Tyler "found wallet" Bozak as his centerman for most of his time with the Leafs instead of the Sedins. Kessel and Bozak have clicked together at times, but not in a way that's building toward team success. No matter what numbers Kessel has put up as a Leaf, it's always been in a vacuum. There's not enough else happening to make Kessel's scoring mean anything.

The rest of the team has been patch-worked together year by year and finally it's coming to a crashing halt. It's not at all surprising that it's happening now.

Kessel is the best player on the Leafs right now, but he's never been the right player to build a team around. Neither is Phaneuf. The best case scenario for the Leafs is to find a way to move these guys on to teams who could really use them.

This idea of building a team around a player, be it a franchise player or your best player, etc., has been done by teams to a certain extent, but not completely or totally.

Take the 1980s Cup-winning Islanders team.  Sure they had scoring sniper Mike Bossy, who as we know, was often called a "pure scorer."  Bossy was no checker (even though he did get checked -- the eventual cause over the years of his back problems), and he more often than not waited for Trottier to pass him the puck.  As dangerous and precise as Bossy was with the puck (whether he was fed the pass or picked up the puck himself),  the Islanders at the time had a very well-balanced team with solid goaltending, solid defence, a solid group of two-way forwards and of course some exceptional talent as well as mentioned.  Plus, not to mention an excellent system incorporated by Arbour & his assistants.

When Arbour encouraged Torrey to take Bossy in the draft, he said something famously to the effect that "I can always teach a scorer how to play defense but it's nearly impossible to teach a defensive player how to score".

Bossy took it to heart. He wanted to be more than just a goal scorer and he was. It didn't hurt that he was playing on a great team with Trottier, a great two way center, for a bunch of those years. But he did deliver on the effort to be decent two ways.

Dave Lewis, who played for the Islanders during Bossy's early years saw it first hand. Lewis was also Kessel's first NHL coach in Boston and used Bossy's example to encourage Kessel.

I realize folks hate the stat but Bossy winding up 14th all time in the +/- stat at +381 reinforces a bit that he didn't exactly suck at two way play. No doubt, playing on a good team with Trottier helped - and that team benefited from having Bossy on it. I just can't imagine a forward being chronically bad defensively for 10 years beating thousands of NHLers over a 10 year span that dramatically. The stat is flawed but not that flawed.

We had another example play for us not too long ago: Alex Mogilny. Now, when he first showed up, he was like Phil - just thinking scoring. Scored 76 one year in Buffalo (but only +7 that season). Probably no one would ever describe Alex as a great two way player - when his team was down, he'd take chances trying to tie the game and sometimes get burned. But by the time Alex got to Toronto - he'd embraced making the effort at two way play. He could still lead his team or be right up there in team scoring while he did it.

So I don't buy the notion that thoroughbred snipers like Bossy, Mogilny and Kessel can't play respectable two way hockey. The only guy of the three who hasn't made a consistent effort at it after his early years in the league seems to be Phil Kessel.