Phil Kessel has spent another summer having his game examined from a number of angles. Is he scoring a lot of 'clutch' points?
Phil Kessel may not dig the team out of deep holes but if he is involved in a goal then there's a good chance that it either helped tie the game or give the Leafs the lead. 16 of his 32 goals came in that situation as well as 22 of his 32 assists.
He had a writer that 12 months ago suggested he could win the Hart Trophy begin advancing a number of myths.
Of course, that isn’t Brophy’s point. Brophy’s point is that Kessel can’t “carry” a team on a lengthy post-season run. The nice thing about this point is that it’s impossible to refute: Kessel hasn’t carried a team on a lengthy playoff run, so despite strong performances in the playoffs and internationally, one can’t prove anything other than that Kessel scores in the playoffs. The logical conclusion to make, of course, is that Kessel’s a good playoff player, but then that’s a conclusion pretty much anybody can come to.
And he's once again going to be trying to create chemistry with new linemates. While on paper Joffrey Lupul and Tim Connolly seem like upgrades, one is struggling out of the gate and the other is already crocked. So, how many goals will Sisyphus get?
How many goals will Phil Kessel score this year?
| Less than 25 | 6 |
| 25-30 | 21 |
| 31-35 | 140 |
| 36-40 | 205 |
| 41-45 | 63 |