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Phil Kessel's postseason scoring record is better than you might think

Charles LeClaire / USA TODAY Sports

Phil Kessel was responsible for both Pittsburgh Penguins goals in Saturday's Game 2 loss to the New York Rangers, padding his commendable - and at the same time perhaps a touch surprising - scoring record in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The previously-maligned sniper now has 15 goals in 24 postseason games, or a 0.63 goal-per-game that almost doubles his regular-season career average.

But here's the rub: His 24 games have been accrued over his decade in the league. Kessel's former Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs teams qualified for the playoffs in just three of his nine previous seasons - and advanced past the first round once - before he moved on to the Penguins last summer.

All of this only adding to his polarity.

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