Wherever Ducks Coach Randy Carlyle has been in his coaching career, Ryan Kesler has literally been a center of his attention.
Carlyle first coached Kesler for minor league Manitoba Moose. Later, in his first turn with the Ducks and as coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Carlyle tried to get Kesler away from his top centers. To put it plainly, perhaps no other coach appreciates how Kesler becomes magnified against the Kings, usually anchored down the middle with Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter.
“His value gets increased [against] the opposition if it’s a Kopitar or a Carter,” Carlyle said.