Recovering from the Phil Kessel Hangover

The Boston Bruins are undoubtedly going to miss Phil Kessel this year. Any team that gives up a 36-goal spark plug off of its top forward line is going to miss that player's offensive talent, without a question.

Kessel asserted himself as a future star in Boston, making great strides on both sides of the puck, and putting himself in a great position for a fat new contract this season. He took his playoff benching in 2007-08 as an impetus to improve his defense, and spent last year lighting up the back of the net.

But in the end, the Bruins were faced with an enviable choice: Kessel, second-line center David Krejci, free-agent blueliner Derek Morris. Choose two.

In this salary cap era, it was inevitable that somebody wasn't going to be wearing black and gold this year. Krejci signed first, and then general manager Peter Chiarelli lured Morris to the Hub.

What followed for Kessel, Chiarelli, and Bruins fans alike was an uncomfortable, if quiet, saga that finally culminated over the weekend, with Kessel being shipped off to Toronto for three high draft picks.

From here, the Bruins and their fans attempt to pick up the pieces and move on.

It'll be tough, especially if Kessel provides a huge piece in Brian Burke's rebuilding puzzle up north. Trading a top player to a division rival is a huge risk, and even the draft picks we received in return may not justify the deal.

As Burke said on NHL.com, "Every deal we make, we're betting on a human being." For Boston, the bet is an even greater risk—the Bruins won't know just who that human being is for nearly a year.

Add that to a spotty first-round draft history, and the Bruins may face trouble. For every Sergei Samsonov and Joe Thornton the Bruins have drafted, there's a Lars Jonsson and Martin Samuelsson.

Chiarelli has shown great foresight in the past, however, and has brought in a lot of players that have really shaped the Bruins into the club they are today. Kessel is likely no great loss in his eyes, despite some of his comments over the past few weeks and at the State of the Bruins town hall meeting.

Remember that Chiarelli is a defensive-minded and team-oriented thinker. Consider some of the players he's brought in since beginning his tenure in Boston: Steve Begin, Andrew Ference, Stephane Yelle, Dennis Wideman, Mark Recchi, and Michael Ryder. Resisting the urge to bring in an offensive superstar with a big ego, he's relied on bringing together players who won't upset the locker room, who will do their jobs with proficiency and integrity, and who will work together to bring the Bruins closer to that elusive Stanley Cup.

So, as messy as the Phil Kessel situation could have gotten, fear not, Bruins fans. People used to view the Joe Thornton trade as armageddon, putting the team in rebuilding mode. I don't think anybody in Boston misses him anymore.

The Bruins will get over the loss of Kessel, too. They may even find a way to improve without him.