Eiserman tops Phil Kessel, moves into second all-time in NTDP scoring
There’s no doubting was Cole Eiserman does best.
And, now, there’s only one skater in the history of the US National Team Development Program that has been more prolific at finding the back of the net. Ever.
Eiserman, No. 13 in FCHockey’s Midterm ranking for the 2024 NHL Draft, netted his 105th career goal with the NTDP in a 5-2 win in the 5 Nations Tournament on Wednesday. The goal bumped him one ahead of Phil Kessel, who scored 104 goals with the Program from 2003-05.
“It was pretty special to move into second place on the NTDP’s all time goals list,” Eiserman wrote in his 2024 NHL Draft Diary on NHL.com. “Obviously, Phil Kessel (who was second) is a really good player. I didn’t really catch too much of him growing up since I was really young. My dad and my brothers were more excited of the milestone than me, actually.”
Kessel, selected with the No. 5 pick in the 2006 draft, scored 413 goals and 992 points in 1,286 games with the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Arizona Coyotes, and Vegas Golden Knights. He is currently an unrestricted free agent.
Cole Caufield, selected in the first round (No. 15) in the 2019 draft, is the all-time scoring leader for the NTDP with 126 goals from 2017-19.
Eiserman, also one of the draft’s youngest players with an Aug. 29 birthdate, paces the NTDP with 57 points (36 goals, 21 assists) in 35 games this season.
He is widely considered to be the best pure sniper in the 2024 draft class.