"I think part of the problem was being looked at as No. 1 for so long, like (Jason) Spezza a few years ago. There's only one way to go. People start looking for things, but he's a great talent and once we met him and had a few long interviews with him in a tough environment, he was pretty good.
"Was he the most worldly guy I ever met for a young kid? No, but he was an 18-year old kid who really didn't understand what happened and why he was falling. All he cared about was playing hockey. We really couldn't fault him for that."
Especially since Kessel made the Bruins coming out of camp, which wasn't a given at the outset. Coach Dave Lewis was hesitant when he talked about the rookie in early September but said the youngster's ability to create chances during the preseason earned him the spot as left wing for Boston's top two young scorers, Patrice Bergeron and Brad Boyes.
"He has very healthy offensive instincts," Lewis said.
Some were evident in Kessel's debut Friday in Florida, even though the Bruins were walloped 8-3 by the Panthers. Kessel showed the big-time speed that has wowed scouts, and while he didn't get on the score sheet, he created two power plays for the Bruins by drawing penalties against Panthers he had beaten.
"He was slick a couple of times," Lewis said. "He was fine."
Kessel was stopped on a good scoring chance by Tampa Bay's Marc Denis the following night but managed his first NHL assist as the Bruins won a one-goal game and again didn't look out of place.
"My main goal has always been to play on the NHL, and now I'm here which might not have happened had I been taken somewhere else," Kessel said. "The truth is that where you go in the draft doesn't really matter because you still have to prove yourself at this level.
"Boston gave me a shot. Now it's up to me to do something with it."
