Phil Kessel "Brings It": Lot's of Positives Despite 2-1 OT Loss to Tampa

Written  By: Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter

The end result, a 2-1 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, was not the desired outcome for the Toronto Maple Leafs. That said, with everyone in Leafland watching, Phil Kessel performed admirably Tuesday night in his debut as a Leaf.

When Kessel was signed as a free agent by Leafs GM Brian Burke, there were plenty of fans that were ready to start the Stanley Cup parade route and just as many that were ready to show up on Burke’s doorstep to kick his door in.

Tuesday night, Kessel’s on-ice performance went a long way in proving his worth. He led the Leafs with 10 shots on goal (a career high), led the team with 23:50 of ice time, survived a massive hit from T-Bay's Mathias Ohlund, played a solid two-way game, and seemingly made his linemates better.

Sure, the end result was a 2-1 loss, but it was the intangibles that Leaf fans should be focusing on. Kessel’s speed was very evident and his compete level was off the charts. Clearly, Kessel came to play and has served notice to the other 29 NHL teams that Toronto will no longer be a “gimmie” on their schedule.

Many writers have been questioning whether or not Kessel would be able to handle the pressure of playing in Toronto. Let us not forget that this is a 23-year-old kid who went through testicular cancer and a serious shoulder injury already in his short NHL career, playing in Toronto? No worries, pardon the pun, but this kid plays "balls out!"

Besides Kessel, the Leafs can take a ton of positives out of their game against Tampa. They were able to muster up 41 shots on T-Bay's Antero Niittymaki (who played excellent), Leafs goalie Jonas Gustavsson made 30 saves and was exceptional between the pipes, and the Leafs were able to keep the NHL’s hottest player (Steven Stamkos) off the scoresheet.

Did they play a perfect game? No, but given the Leafs improved play of late, you have to believe the Leafs are not as bad as they appear to be on paper and may very well be able to turn this season around.

Underrated defenseman Ian White scored a power play goal and registered four shots on net, Lee Stempniak had six shots and defenseman Mike Komisarek stayed out of the penalty box- which is something short of a miracle.

Despite the loss, it was a great night for the Leafs. Gustavsson looks better with every game played and, with Kessel in the lineup, the Leafs are sure to play with a lot more confidence and passion, something that was missing early on in the season.

Up next for the Leafs? The Leafs visit the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday, followed by an Original Six matchup against the struggling Detroit Red Wings at Home on Saturday night, both of which are winnable games.

The Phil Kessel era has arrived and, so far, "It's all good..."

Until next time,

Peace!