Matthews’ snapshot serves as a reminder of Kessel’s days in Toronto
TORONTO — The Toronto Maple Leafs and Pittsburgh Penguins were drawn into the media debate about who is the best player in hockey, the Leafs’ Auston Matthews or Edmonton’s Connor McDavid, the two-time defending NHL scoring champion.
But with Pittsburgh in town, that talk was quickly muted on Thursday morning, with Sidney Crosby getting the nod from both his Penguins teammates and Toronto coach Mike Babcock.
Nazem Kadri, meanwhile, was comparing shots rather than players, and brought up the name of former teammate Phil Kessel. His snapshot is probably as good as Matthews’ drag and snapshot. When was with the Leafs from 2009 to ’15, Kessel’s snapshot became the subject of how-to videos for coaches and players of all levels.
“Phil’s shot is more of a true snapshot,” Kadri said. “(Matthews) has variety, he shoots it off his front foot, but he can drag it and then shoot, and that creates different angles for the goalie to try and find.
“They can both get their shots off so quick. Even Mats (Matthews), with that drag move he does, he can still get it off quick, and that makes them both dangerous.”
While hockey has had magnificent practitioners of the snapshot over its history, the number of Leafs players included in that conversation wasn’t usually voluminous.
The Leafs have had a handful of players with good snapshots over the years — Wendel Clark, Darryl Sittler, Lanny McDonald and Mats Sundin among them — but Matthews is one of the few whose shot truly stands out.
Penguins coach Mike Sullivan, while addressing the current Matthews-McDavid discussion, said one of the reasons Matthews is in the league’s best-player conversation is his shot.
“I think the biggest thing that jumps out at me is his release,” Sullivan said.
Kessel, meanwhile, is firmly entrenched with the Penguins, no longer overwhelmed by a leadership role as he was with the Leafs. Pittsburgh has offered something of a hockey sanctuary; he’s blended well with a team of stars and is now credited with keeping the players loose and making players better on the ice.
“He’s always a good balance in our room,” Penguins defenceman Jack Johnson said. “He’s a pretty happy-go-lucky kind of guy … he’s always fun, he’s such a good fit in here.”
Kadri was a young player during Kessel’s tenure in Toronto, which coincided with Dion Phaneuf ’s captaincy.
That leadership group was highly criticized. It was a struggling team when (Kessel and Phaneuf ) were here,” Kadri said.
“They were the two highestpaid guys on the team and that made them the easiest to pick on.”