Phil Kessel Will Start Season With Sidney Crosby

Phil Kessel has been the source of more speculation than an oil field this summer. First it was fans hemming and hawing over where he would get traded to, if he was actually traded at all. Then, following the July 1 trade to Pittsburgh, it was a debate over how he would be used by the Penguins, with two great centers up front.

Debate no more, denizens of the internet. (Except, you will, so never mind.) Coach Mike Johnston said on Tuesday that he tentatively plans on starting the season with Kessel on the right side of the team’s top line with David Perron, pushing Chris Kunitz down to the second line on the left side. (He could possibly even be on the third line, depending on how the team uses Sergei Plotnikov.)

The Penguins open the 2015-16 season on October 8 against the Stars in Dallas.

RELATED: Jim Rutherford Has Made His Own Luck This Offseason