Phil Kessel's Top 10 Goals as a Toronto Maple Leaf

He's young. He's fast. He's explosive—and he's been silencing critics with his exceptional play well into the 2011-12 NHL season.

Oh, did I mention he plays for the Maple Leafs?

Phil Kessel has climbed the rankings of elite talents in professional hockey and has clearly emerged as one of the NHL's most dangerous scorers.

It doesn't matter if he is leading the NHL in points or goals. The fact that we can even utter his name in a conversation about Hart Trophy candidates is revelation unto itself.

Once considered a pure goal-scorer and a one dimensional player, Kessel has evolved into much more than that as a Maple Leaf.

In the spirit of honoring his greatest and most recognized attributes, let's have a look at 10 of Kessel's most spectacular goals in his time with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

No. 10

Phil Kessel showcases brilliant hand-eye coordination and bats a puck in mid-air over Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas.

No. 9

Phil Kessel generates incredible speed and keeps the puck on a string en route to scoring his second goal of the game against Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas.

No. 8

Phil Kessel has the last touch on a fantastic end-to-end rush beating goaltender Mike Smith and the Tampa Bay Lightning in overtime.

He certainly knows how to capitalize on great opportunities, as Tyler Bozak's beautiful pass allows Kessel to do what he does best—light it up.

No. 7

Phil Kessel proves that he is dangerous no matter where he is on the ice by giving us a brilliant example of why he is considered one of the most skilled snipers in the league.

The goal itself is just a bit better than the pantomime performed by the Toronto Maple Leafs "archer" in the crowd—loading an invisible arrow into his invisible bow. Priceless.

No. 6

Phil Kessel is definitely on a shortlist of NHL stars who can score this goal. Edmonton Oilers goaltender Devan Dubnyk looks absolutely shell-shocked—as does pretty much every other player on the ice.

No. 5

Phil Kessel hammers home a one-timer past Winnipeg Jets goaltender Ondrej Pavelec.

Dion Phaneuf's slick pass helped Kessel cap off an impressive three-point night while the Toronto Maple Leafs went on to win the game 4-3 in a shootout.

No. 4

Phil Kessel can burn you with his blazing-fast release but he also has the patience to out-wait and out-smart the opposition.

In this clip, Kessel's goal rallies the Toronto Maple Leafs to solidify a victory against the San Jose Sharks, marking coach Ron Wilson's 600th career win.

No. 3

Phil Kessel is absolutely magical on this individual effort. Once he is in full flight, it's almost impossible to contain him.

Kessel helped the Toronto Maple Leafs overcome a two-goal deficit to eventually steal the win from the Florida Panthers by a score of 6-4.

No. 2

Please excuse the length of this video prior to the actual goal, but it is necessary to sense the gravity of how epic Phil Kessel is.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are way back on their heels, just treading water against the surging Florida Panthers late in the third period.

Just when a tying goal seems imminent, Kessel takes matters into his own hands to ensure the win.

This goal speaks volumes to what kind of hockey player Kessel truly is. It says, "I'm faster and better than you and you can't do anything about it."

No. 1

Phil Kessel has scored and will continue to score goals that completely confound and amaze the opposition and fans alike—but perhaps none prettier than this one.

Kessel out-works, out-muscles and out-skates Calgary Flames defender Chris Butler, finishing the play by roofing the puck over Miikka Kiprusoff.

If that isn't the embodiment of what an NHL All-Star can do, I don't know what is.

Hey Ovi, did you get a picture of that one?