Kessel making it not made easy
SUNRISE, Fla. -- Last year around this time, Phil Kessel was still doing homework. Still attending classes. Still an 18-year-old student at the University of Minnesota.
So it's been a foreign but welcome experience for the rookie as he prepared for his pro debut last night against the Florida Panthers, one that was confirmed Tuesday when Bruins coach Dave Lewis informed Kessel he had officially made the team.
``Not until the end," said a relieved Kessel, when asked if he thought he cemented a spot earlier in training camp. ``They told me I made it. That was the only time. The whole time I was working hard trying to make the team."
It's a process unfamiliar to Kessel, always considered a puck protégé as he progressed through youth hockey. For two years, the native of Madison, Wis., was the centerpiece of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program, where he first wore the No. 81 he pulled over his head last night.
He was heavily recruited by Wisconsin and Minnesota, choosing the Golden Gophers and coach Don Lucia. He was a go-to guy on the US roster for the last two World Junior Championships, the top drawing of international teenage talent.
So when he was told, before he signed a three-year contract, by general manager Peter Chiarelli that his spot on the 2006-07 Boston roster was not a given, Kessel was entering new territory. Before, teams had always invited him into their fold.
Not this time.
But his debut in last night's 8-3 loss emphasized the strength of Kessel's camps -- both rookie and big-boy -- and the dynamic presence he showed, especially in his first exhibition game against Montreal when he recorded two assists. Kessel said he felt some butterflies before lat night's game, but drew two penalties, finishing the night with 14:05 of ice time and two shots.
He had one defensive misplay when he failed to get his stick on a clearing attempt, allowing Florida defenseman Jay Bouwmeester to walk off the wall with the puck and set up forward Juraj Kolnik's first-period goal.
``I thought he was fine in his first game," Lewis said. ``He was slick a couple of times. He was fine."
Since his two-assist preseason game against Montreal, his production tailed off. But Lewis didn't worry, locking him into the left-wing slot alongside Patrice Bergeron and Brad Boyes, a move that turned Petr Tenkrat, signed this offseason as a potential top-six forward, into a waiver-wire player.
``Either he tapered off a little bit or more veteran players started to play," Lewis said of Kessel. ``But he's been fine. He's created scoring chances every game he's played in."
One of the bigger changes Kessel has had to adjust to is the size of the rink. Last year, he played his home games on an Olympic-size sheet at Mariucci Arena. He also skated regularly on big ice when the Gophers played on the road, and also on Olympic sheets in international play.
In the NHL, where the sheet is 85 feet wide, Kessel hasn't had as much time to read and react. Which hasn't necessarily been a bad thing for the quick-thinking rookie. ``Things happen quicker," he said. ``If a guy makes a mistake, then you've got him."
Yesterday, before the morning skate, Kessel stood near the visitors' bench, taking in the surroundings at BankAtlantic Center. He had attained his first goal of making the NHL. But he knows -- and his employers are hoping -- that it's only the first step.
