Pittsburgh Penguins Acquire Phil Kessel
Well, the Metropolitan Division just got more competitive. First, Brandon Saad moves from Chicago to Columbus and, now, the Toronto Maple Leafs traded Phil Kessel to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
As per @TSNBobMcKenzie, Penguins trade Spaling, Kapanen, Harrington and two picks to Leafs for Kessel and two other contracts...
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) July 1, 2015
Leafs also sending a second-round pick in 2016 to PItsburgh as part of Kessel deal. The picks they're getting from Pitt are 1st and 3rd
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) July 1, 2015
Erixon and Biggs are also going to Pitt from Toronto in Kessel deal; Leafs retain 15 percent of Kessel salary ($1.2 M AAV a year)
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) July 1, 2015
So each team is getting quite a bit and Toronto is only retaining 15 percent of his salary, about $1.2 million annually. That’s a pretty good deal.
We knew this move was coming, we just weren’t sure when Kessel would be moved and who would be the lucky team.
I think this trade could work out in Kessel’s favor. Pittsburgh is a great hockey market, but maybe not as unforgiving as Toronto, and he will be playing with the likes of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
The Penguins have a lot of talent, but also need a scorer like Kessel to contribute and put the team back on the right track. Adding Kessel essentially gives the Penguins two top lines. That’s pretty snazzy.
What is great for Kessel is he won’t be carrying the team alone and he probably won’t experience the brunt of the media attention—the camera has and always will turn to Sid. Less pressure for Kessel, in my mind, equates to a better and more relaxed scorer.
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This atmosphere may allow Kessel to focus more on his game; Pittsburgh may be a break for him in a sense, and I think that will only allow his game to develop further. I would expect to see a different Kessel than the one we have seen in Toronto, especially since he will probably be on a line with Crosby or Malkin (top talent playing with top talent).
Toronto is rebuilding. The team wanted to unload Kessel and it did. It is surprising that they would choose to keep him in the conference, but at least they got him out of the division.
While the move puts more pressure on the Penguins cap issues, you have to give credit to the team’s GM Jim Rutherford who was able to prevent his top two young defensemen Olli Maatta and Derrick Pouliot from heading over to Toronto in the deal. Everyone has cap issues—the Penguins will just have to find a way to make it work.
So, Kessel welcome to Pittsburgh; welcome to the Metropolitan Division.
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