Free-agent winger Phil Kessel nonetheless totally intends on taking part in in 2024-25 — although whether or not it’s within the NHL stays to be seen, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet stated on Friday’s “32 Ideas” podcast (audio link).
As Friedman notes, Kessel was one of many gamers that Main League Hockey, a 3-on-3 league hoping to start out operations later this 12 months, approached about signing with a staff earlier than the league postponed its launch to Oct. 2025. It doesn’t seem an NHL skilled tryout or assured contract is imminent for him, both.
Kessel is a three-time All-Star Recreation participant and a three-time Stanley Cup champion however was out of the NHL final season after taking part in with the Golden Knights in 2022-23. He posted 14 objectives and 36 factors in 82 video games, his lowest complete offensive output since his rookie season, earlier than going unsigned for all of 2023-24. He was near inking a deal with the Canucks at the trade deadline, however it fell via as a result of an absence of cap area.
With a full 12 months off from the sport, the NHL’s lively and all-time consecutive video games performed chief is probably going a fringe bottom-six scorer or No. 13 ahead at finest on most groups. If Kessel is prepared to threat dropping his ironman streak of 1,064 video games, which is barely prone to being handed by the Hurricanes’ Brent Burns (843), he’ll have a better time touchdown a deal.
Kessel hasn’t been off the ice since profitable the Cup with Vegas over a 12 months in the past, although. He’s saved in an ordinary coaching routine and practiced with the Canucks’ farm membership in Abbotsford within the lead-up to his potential deadline deal.