On the Fly: Kessel will thrill, goal celebrations, Torres gets 41 games, and the Leafs' rebuild
"On the Fly," theScore's NHL roundtable series, continues, with contributions from our NHL team: Justin Bourne, Justin Cuthbert, Josh Gold-Smith, Craig Hagerman, Ian McLaren, Navin Vaswani, and Ben Whyte. With the season beginning Wednesday night, editors are tackling a few different topics.
Kessel in Pittsburgh can't be missed
Gold-Smith: I'm looking forward to watching Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel transition to the NHL, but I'm most excited to watch Phil Kessel this season.
He's being inserted into an already explosive Pittsburgh Penguins offense, and should only excel alongside Sidney Crosby in 5-on-5 situations and on the first power-play unit. From a human perspective, it will be great to watch Kessel play with his dynamic new teammates, finally free of the Toronto media fishbowl.
After everything that transpired during his six-year tenure with the Maple Leafs, watching Kessel work with Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and the Penguins is going to be appointment viewing every time they play. Kessel is immensely talented, and the five-time 30-goal scorer should have no problem hitting that mark for the sixth time in his debut season with Pittsburgh.
On goal celebrations ...
Bourne: There’s always angst in hockey’s logo-first, namebar-second culture when a player over-celebrates, and the grousing from both sides - "What a selfish hotdog" and "Just let the boys have fun" - has grown equally grating.
To me, it boils down to one thing: did the player shun his squad to celly solo? If so, I’m allowed to hike up my britches and tut-tut a little bit. I mean, hug it out fellas. Few goals are created by one man alone.
But if a guy poses like Captain Morgan (I’ve done that), pulls a fake sharpie out of his sock and mimes signing his stick (that too), or pretends to heat his hands over his hot stick (that one’s all Ovi), it’s cool so long as he’s ready and willing to embrace the boys when it’s time to bring it in for the real thing.
Torres gets 41 games
McLaren: The NHL is making an example out of Raffi Torres.
The San Jose Sharks forward, who was attempting to crack the opening night roster after being sidelined for 17 months with a knee injury, was slapped with a 41-game suspension for a head shot on Jakob Silfverberg of the Anaheim Ducks during the preseason. The half-season ban marks the fourth-longest in league history, and is 16 games longer than Torres' previous high set back in 2012 (a 25-game suspension following an injurious hit on Chicago Blackhawks forward Marian Hossa that was eventually reduced to 21 on appeal.)
While this latest incident may not be the most egregious of Torres' career, the Department of Player Safety is clearly tired of his act, and is sending a clear message that it won't be tolerated any longer. Another misstep upon his return, and he'll have likely played his last NHL game.
As an offshoot of this suspension, the rest of the league is officially on watch in regards to similar incidents that may occur this season.
The question remains whether the hammer will be dropped so soundly should a star player commit such an act.
The rebuild begins
Vaswani: When the Toronto Maple Leafs open their season Wednesday night against the Montreal Canadiens, the kids - Connor Brown, Zach Hyman, Kasperi Kapanen, and William Nylander - will be watching on television along with the rest of us. The four of them are beginning 2015-16 with the AHL's Toronto Marlies, and that's absolutely the right call.
Last week, head coach Mike Babcock said, "I like these kids," and hinted that one or more might crack the opening-night roster. For all the talk about patience and a plan, it seemed like the Leafs might do what they do best - think short term.
But the demotions, above all else, signal commitment to a slow, patient, and calculated rebuild. It's actually happening: The Toronto Maple Leafs are going to try and develop NHL-caliber talent, even eschewing 10-game auditions.
Last season was a nightmare for Toronto, losing 40 of their final 51 games. The current Leafs are saying what you'd expect them to say, that what's happening in the organization is more a "retool" than a "rebuild," but make no mistake: The Leafs are going to get worse before they get better, and that's what this franchise needs, more than anything. So bring on more losses. Bring on the pain. There's light at the end of the tunnel, even if it takes a bit of time to get there.