NHL Future Watch: Matthew Kessel Hockey Cards, St. Louis Blues – Matthew Kessel was drafted by the St. Louis Blues with the 150th overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. By the time March 28th, 2022, came around, he signed a two-year deal with the Blues.
At 6’3” and 203 pounds, Kessel was always going to get a chance to be a good professional. By 2018-19, he was on his third team in the USHL. While with the Sioux Falls Stampede, he had 19 points in 62 games. In 12 playoff games, he scored four points. He was a Clark Cup Champion. That was a solid season.
In 2019-20, Kessel attended U-Mass and scored 11 points in 34 games. It was a solid season for his first playing NCAA hockey.
2020-21 was a big year for him. He was more of an offensive force scoring 10 goals and 13 assists in 29 games. After the season, he was named to the USCHO All-Second Team, he won an NCAA Championship, and he was on the All-Tournament team. That was his second career championship.
In 2021-22, he was wearing the “A” and scored six goals with 11 helpers in 37 games. He was ready to turn professional. He caught on with the Springfield Thunderbirds and played in 15 games scoring three points. Then he went on a long playoff run playing in 18 games and netting two points. It was a year of development for the young blueliner.
In 2022-23, he played in two games with the Blues without scoring. Another full season in Springfield was good as he scored five goals and had 28 assists in 71 games. A solid second run with them, and he added a few more playoff games as well.
In 2023-24, he got to fill in when the Blues had injuries and played very well. He only had two points and was a –4, but he had really good moments. In his first 29 games with Springfield, Kessel had six points. Kessel was playing a role. He’s not a star player, but he has a good shot and can put up some points. At 24, he could break out next year.
NHL Future Watch: Matthew Kessel Cards Worth Collecting
The first card to look for is Kessel’s 2023-24 Upper Deck Series 1 Young Guns Rookie. He’s shown in his classic Blues white uniform in action. A great-looking card, and it should be one of his best.
The next card could be his 2023-24 Upper Deck Artifacts Rookie. There is one that is serial-numbered to 199, and that’s the better one to go after. It shows a nice shot of him from the chest up.
One more exciting card is his 2023-24 Upper Deck Series 1 Young Guns Clear Cut rookie. It’s much harder to get, but it’s a cool-looking technology card.
NHL Future Watch: Matthew Kessel Hockey Cards, St. Louis Blues – Stats
Statistical image generated on Sports Reference 03/05/2024.
NHL Future Watch: Matthew Kessel Hockey Cards, St. Louis Blues – More Resources
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Russ Cohen
is the author of several top-selling sports related books.
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