Question about Kessel

Beesfan

Registered User
Apr 10, 2006
4,884
1,918
Shelby-villains said:
Jagr used to drive me crazy in his first few seasons with Pittsburgh cuz he would try the same move over and over again. Luckily for him, he learned to use his teammates a little more. I think Kessel will do the same.

A major reason Jagr was able to expand his game is that he became a very strong player down low and learned to make plays off the half-boards. People forget that he is really a power forward--I mean the guy is 6'3 245 pounds. I'm not sure this will ever be Kessel's game, though I do expect him to become more efficient offensively (hopefully in the mold of Joe Sakic).

Keeping in mind that Kessel is only 18, I think he will put on 10 pounds and play at around 6'0, 200-205. This should at least make him competitive down low. Also, IMO people underestimate Kessel's playmaking ability. I like the fact that he had so many assists this year, both with Minnesota and at the WJC. We know he has a nasty shot, but he has proven that he can find teamates with bullet passes. He is not Daigle when it comes to vision. I really do think he is worthy of a #1 pick in the average draft, just based on his dominance against players his age in international competition. I was looking back on his WJC stats, and disregarding the 5 point outing, it is still pretty good. A goal and an assist against the Czech Rep. in a critical 2-1 win...where were the other highly touted Americans such as Bobby Ryan, Robbie Schremp and Blake Wheeler? I strongly believe that teams will regret passing on this guy.
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

-->