Sportsnet's Chris Johnston reports that all is going well for Phil Kessel in Pittsburgh thus far, and Kessel's teammates certainly vouch for the ever-guarded #81:

"He’s pretty funny," said Crosby. "You know what, he’s just comfortable. He seems like he’s been here a lot longer than a month or whatever."

"We have fun with him — that's one part I'm a little bit surprised [about]," said David Perron, who met Kessel for the first time at training camp and now occupies the locker stall beside him.

"You never know what kind of guy you're going to get. He's been awesome, he's been pretty funny. Guys keep him loose."

These are the early days of what should be a long marriage. Kessel is under contract through 2020-21 and carries a cap hit of $6.8-million (the Leafs are covering the other $1.2-million) to go with a limited no-trade clause.

Often a change of scenery has a positive impact on a player, especially one coming from a team that missed the playoffs five of the last six years and is being promised more freedom.

"It's a tough market in Toronto," said Perron. "I think he was loving it there, but maybe it was time to move on. I don't know all that happened there. We're really happy to have him."

Continued