Ex-Leaf's iron man record remains intact, but he has been a scratch for most of the playoffs
The iron-man himself, Phil Kessel has played in and suited up for 1,064 consecutive regular season games. He was a vital cog in the Pittsburgh Penguins machine that won back to back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017 and now finds himself on the Vegas Golden Knights who are 1 win away from their first championship in 6 years of existence.
However, Kessel has only played in 4 playoff games this post-season and his last time in the lineup was against the Winnipeg Jets on the 24th of April. Since then the Knights finished off the Jets, then defeated the Edmonton Oilers, before taking down the Dallas Stars to advance to their 2nd trip to the Finals in franchise history.
Kessel hasn't been the same player who tore things up in Pittsburgh and who played through the doldrums of Maple Leafs hockey before the team triggered their rebuild. He scored 61 goals and 174 points in his final 2 seasons with the Penguins that included a career-high of 92 in 2017-18. He chipped in with 18 goals and 45 points in 49 games during the 2 Stanley Cup runs shortly after being traded by the Leafs. He was then moved to Arizona before finding his way to Vegas.
William Carrier took Kessel's spot in the playoff lineup after Game 4 against the Jets. Kessel recorded 2 assists in 4 games, while averaging 11:47 TOI. Carrier on the other hand has 2 goals and 6 points in 17 games, while averaging 9:54 TOI. Kessel's iron-man streak is intact since it doesn't include or involve post-season games, however the 35-year-old might be near the end of his lengthy career after being usurped by Carrier with the Knights so close to winning it all.
He still has the veteran leadership and wherewithal to be a good secondary or tertiary option, however that won't likely be in Vegas, as he hopes to somehow find himself playing meaningful hockey somewhere else next year.
