Return? Major development in Phil Kessel returning has been reported
A major development has been reported regarding former Boston Bruins forward Phil Kessel returning to the NHL.
Pierre LeBrun, a trusted NHL insider has reported that Phil Kessel is still looking to play in the NHL this year.
Kessel currently holds the longest ironman streak of all-time. He is the only player in league history to play at least 1,000 games in a row. His current streak is 1,064 - 75 more than Keith Yandle, whose record Kessel broke during the 2022-23.
Phil Kessel has not gained any attention from NHL teams, but he is still looking to play this year. Reportedly, he and his agent are approaching teams looking for a contract.
LeBrun from The Athletic had this to say:
A couple of teams have stayed in touch with his agent, Wade Arnott, on it. They wanted to see how things played out in their camps and preseason early on before circling back.
Kessel skated with NHL players in Arizona before camps opened and is training and keeping in shape. I'm told he doesn't care about his regular season ironman streak if teams were worried about dealing with that. He would be open to missing games and playing whatever role was asked of him.
- Pierre LeBrun
It would suck to see Phil Kessel sign, and then get scratched and lose his ironman streak, and I'm sure fans would not like it either.
Phil Kessel was drafted by the Boston Bruins 5th overall during the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.
He would go on to play three seasons with the Bruins before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a 2010 first-round pick (Tyler Seguin), a 2010 second-round pick (Jared Knight) and a 2011 first-round pick (Dougie Hamilton).
The three time Stanley Cup Champion has not seen the NHL action since winning the Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2022-23.
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