Much was made of his omission from Team USA's World Cup roster - not once, but twice - however the Stanley Cup champion got the last laugh Tuesday as he watched his country get eliminated from the tournament after only two games.
Ladies and gentlemen, Kessel's third tweet of 2016:
Just sitting around the house tonight w my dog. Felt like I should be doing something important, but couldn't put my finger on it.
Thanks to a dominant 4-2 win over the United States on Tuesday, Canada punched a ticket to the World Cup semifinal round, also ensuring at least a second-place finish for Europe in Group A.
The U.S. and the Czech Republic, therefore, have been eliminated from semifinal contention.
Playing for its tournament life, the USA drew first blood as defenseman Ryan McDonagh chipped a loose puck past Carey Price, ending the Canadian goalie’s international shutout streak.
Carey Price's international shutout streak ends at 228:41.
The lead did not last long, however, as Matt Duchene and Corey Perry scored 14 seconds apart to give Canada the lead. American head coach John Tortorella challenged the second goal on an assertion of goalie interference, and while the call on the ice stood, the review time was essentially used as the timeout burned by the request.
The rallying cry didn’t work in USA’s favor, though, as Duchene extended Canada’s lead with his second of the game six minutes later.
Patrice Bergeron gave the opposition a chance to cut into the lead by taking a puck-over-glass penalty early in the second, but after recording only a single shot, the Americans allowed a goal by Bergeron 30 seconds following his exit from the box.
After a lull in scoring, and after rattling the puck off the post three separate times in the latter stages of the third period, the Americans scored a second goal - credited to T.J. Oshie - as a result of the puck bouncing off Canadian Joe Thornton and into his own net.
The U.S. was unable to add more with Jonathan Quick pulled for the extra attacker, however, giving Canada the regulation victory.
Price made 25 saves for the win, while Quick allowed four goals on 34 shots.
The shot count finished 34-27 in Canada's favor, with the shot attempts painting a fuller picture of which team won the possession battle.
Canada and Europe both have two wins apiece, and will settle first place in Group A in a game to be played Wednesday night.
Agent Tom Lynn confirmed Tuesday he's in talks with general manager Stan Bowman about a contract extension for his client, whose entry-level deal will expire at the end of 2016-17. Panarin, who's currently in Toronto representing Russia at the World Cup, said he's taking a hands-off approach to the negotiation process.
"I came to play on the NHL level not because of money and contracts," Panarin said through an interpreter, according to Chris Kuc of the Chicago Tribune. "My agent will deal with the rest."
Panarin added, "As of right now, I like everything and … I'm very content."
The Calder Trophy winner is set to earn a base salary of $812,500, but his stellar rookie season brought him around $2.6 million in bonuses.
Panarin scored 30 goals and added 47 assists in 80 games for the Blackhawks last season, and can become a restricted free agent next summer.
The King reclaimed his throne in grand fashion Tuesday afternoon.
After missing Sweden's first game because of an illness, Henrik Lundqvist pitched a 36-save shutout in his return to the crease, calmly thwarting a desperate effort from Finland.
Lundqvist's masterful performance certainly didn't go unnoticed, as his Swedish peers were quick to credit the veteran netminder for their second win in as many round robin games.
"He's one of the top goalies in the world and I think he proved that tonight," Swedish head coach Rickard Gronborg told Stephen Whyno of The Associated Press following the game.
Up next, Sweden faces a quick turnaround, slated to take on North America on Wednesday afternoon, but fortunately for the Swedes, Lundqvist said he'll be ready to go.
Sweden dealt Finland a near-fatal blow Tuesday afternoon, surviving a late push and clinging to a 2-0 victory to defeat its northern European archrivals.
Defenseman Anton Stralman scored what stood to be the winning goal in the second period, created from a vintage cycle between Daniel and Henrik Sedin.
Loui Eriksson added an empty-netter with only two seconds remaining.
After a shaky pre-tournament and a poorly-timed illness, Henrik Lundqvist was rock solid in his World Cup debut, turning away all 36 Finnish shots for the shutout.
It wasn't a particularly dominant win for Sweden, having been outshot 36-29, but the Swedes stayed composed through the entire game, keeping Finland's attack to the perimeter with a stout defensive performance.
Finland is still alive in the tournament, but barely. In order for the Finn's to survive, Sweden must beat North America on Wednesday, while Finland has to defeat Russia on Thursday, in their final round robin contest.
This scenario would create a three-way tie in Group B.
While rumors swirl about the defender's health after he took a hard hit from Leo Komarov on Sunday, CBC's Scott Oake reports Tuesday afternoon that the Florida Panthers are taking no chances with the 20-year-old and summoning him home for evaluation.
On broadcast, @ScottOake reporting Aaron Ekblad to head back to FLA in next couple of days for evaluation by team doctors.
Earlier Tuesday, North America head coach Todd McLellan said Ekblad's day to day with an upper-body injury. A Monday report had the D-man suffering from concussion-like symptoms, while TSN's Bob McKenzie said Tuesday a concussion had yet to be diagnosed, and that Ekblad was receiving treatment for a stiff neck.
Nobody knows, in other words, the extent of Ekblad's injury, save for the Panthers.
Florida Panthers GM Tom Rowe on Aaron Ekblad: 'We're not going to risk anything, there's too much at stake.' #WCH2016
Ekblad played 23:23 against Finland in North America's tournament opener. He sat out Monday's loss to Russia.
It's a big loss for the under-23 team, as Ekblad is the team's best defenseman, and was serving as an alternate captain. He's already had issues with concussions in his young career.
Another defender, Ryan Murray, didn't practice Tuesday, but it was ruled a maintenance day for the Columbus Blue Jacket.
Regarding the thinning North America defense. World Cup rules only allow for emergency replacement when team drops below 20 skaters.
The 24-year-old had shoulder surgery in early June and was expected to be out four-to-six months, but he'll take part in full-contact practices at camp, writes the Detroit Free Press' Helene St. James.
"I'm feeling good," Pulkkinen said. "I'm hoping to maybe play one or two exhibition games, but we'll see how I feel."
Pulkkinen signed a one-year contract worth slightly over $800,000 with Detroit in July, and he knows what's at stake heading into the season.
"I need a big camp," he said. "I don't want to think about who is playing and what spots are open. I'm just going to do my best."
A fourth-round pick in 2010, the Finnish native has yet to crack the Red Wings' lineup for good. He had six goals and six assists in 36 games last season, but 11 of his 12 points came in his first 22 games.
Pulkkinen has 11 goals and nine assists in 70 career NHL games.
Michel Therrien says he never called Max Pacioretty the "worst captain in Canadiens' history."
"I never said those things," Therrien said Tuesday. "I don't pay attention, quite honestly, to hearsay. If I start to pay attention to everything that they say, as a coach I'm going to lose my focus."
The response came after a local Montreal radio station alleged Therrien called out the Canadiens leader.
Pacioretty was voted captain of the Canadiens by teammates at the start of last season.
