Just Who Is Michael Kesselring?

After trading up to select Olivier Rodrigue this past June in the NHL entry draft, the Edmonton Oilers had a lengthy wait. The club sat out the third, fourth and fifth rounds of the draft due to various trades and didn’t select again until pick 164. That draft choice was used on a defender, as Peter Chiarelli and company took a ‘draft-and-follow’ blueliner in the form of Michael Kesselring.

The 6’4” rearguard from New Hampton, New Hampshire entered the Oilers system at a bit of an odd point in his career. Kesselring only played in twelve USHL games a year ago, and won’t head to that league full-time until this coming season. On top of that, his college commitment to Merrimack had just fallen apart as that college was undergoing a coaching change.

That said, Kesselring was an impact player at the high school level in New Hampshire, posting 34 points (11-23-34) in 38 games for New Hampton School, a prep school in his hometown.

So…Just Who Is Michael Kesselring?:

At 6’4” and 190 pounds, Kesselring has the natural size to appeal to Chiarelli and his management team. His stats in high school also suggest that he understands the offensive aspects of the game, and that he can move the puck while controlling things from the point in the offensive zone.

Following his high school campaign, Kesselring headed to Des Moines, where he joined the USHL’s Buccaneers for a twelve game stint. During those twelve games, he posted two points (two assists) and looked like he belonged in the top junior league in the States. He’ll play full-time for the Buccaneers this coming season, his first and likely only season in the league.

Over the weekend, Kesselring announced his commitment to Northeastern University in Boston. Northeastern, as you might remember, is where current Oiler defender Matt Benning developed as a seventh round pick of the Bruins before signing with the Oilers.

Northeastern hasn’t been on the level of Boston College or Boston University consistently, but NU has done an excellent job of building the program back up in the last few years. They’ve won a Beanpot (That’s a huge deal here) and been to the NCAA Tournament twice, along with a Hockey East Championship mixed in there. They’ve quietly become one of the best programs in the country, and should help Kesselring take that next step.

Here’s a look at Kesselring’s game from Jeff Cox:

Jeff Cox (New England Hockey Journal): New Hampton defenseman Michael Kesselring picked 164th by Edmonton Oilers. Big, lanky, skates, has offensive instincts. Will be in Des Moines in USHL this year. De-committed from Merrimack this past week. As a senior, Michael Kesselring was the top player for the Huskies and was one of the best defensemen in all of New England.

What Can We Expect?:

Kesselring fits the model of prospect that Chiarelli often took a gamble with when he was in Boston. He’d take NCAA bound players late and stash them, knowing they were at least four or five seasons away from turning pro. That’s exactly the case with Kesselring.

He’ll play this year in the USHL, then will get at least two seasons at Northeastern. Odds are, Kesselring plays through his junior season with the Huskies, meaning we won’t see him until the fall of 2022. That’s only if he doesn’t play his senior season too, which players for the Huskies almost always do.

That said, just because he’s a long time off doesn’t mean he’s a bad prospect. In fact, I actually like this gamble. Sixth round picks rarely turn out, so if you see a player with talent you might as well roll the dice. Kesselring has talent, size and is a right-shot defender. He’s got tons of time to develop, and he’s poised to play in a great junior league and then the best conference in college hockey.

As for 2018-19, I think Oiler fans should be hoping that Kesselring establishes himself as a full-time member of the Des Moines blueline while playing on the powerplay and scoring around 30 points. If he’s able to do that, which isn’t an easy task, then we can start looking at him as a strong candidate for playing time in Boston next fall.