The Kessel family’s hockey story is headed for another big stage, and this time it’s the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.
Amanda Kessel and Phil Kessel will be inducted together as part of the Class of 2026, a fitting twist for two siblings whose paths were shaped by the same Wisconsin backyard battles, the same summer training sessions and the same obsession with winning. Amanda called it “Obviously, this is a tremendous honor,” and added, “Really special to go in with my brother, who's helped me a ton throughout my career. I couldn't be more proud of him as well.”
Their connection to hockey started early, with Amanda tagging along behind Phil and Blake and jumping into whatever competition was happening. She said, “Whatever they were doing, I wanted to do,” and remembered that in Wisconsin, skating on a pond was just part of life.
The sibling rivalry was constant, too. Amanda recalled playing 1v1v1 with Phil and Blake and joked, “I think I would only have to shoot it in the net and Phil would have to hit a post.
I had easier rules [laughs], but it was always, like, the competition between us was always there. That's something that I felt carried over to my career.”
Phil remembered those battles in his own way, saying he’d recently been talking with a friend on the golf course about the 4v4 and 5v5 games that included Amanda, Blake and Ryan Suter. He said, “The competitiveness was crazy,” and added, “I mean, if people got to see what we used to do - slash and hit and fights in summer hockey - they probably wouldn't really believe some of the stuff that happens.”
That fire carried both of them far. Phil went pro after one season at the University of Minnesota, where he was the WCHA’s Rookie of the Year.
Amanda arrived there a few years later and immediately piled up championships, winning national titles in two of her first three seasons. She also earned a silver medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Her career hit a pause after a concussion suffered while playing for Team USA forced her to step away from school and hockey for a year. Amanda was referred to Dr. Michael ‘Micky’ Collins, who currently serves as the clinical and executive director of the UPMC Sports Medicine Concussion Program, and eventually came back to win her third NCAA national championship in 2016.
That same spring, Phil was lifting the first of his two Stanley Cups with the Penguins. Amanda was still in college then, but Pittsburgh would become part of her own hockey journey later on, when she joined the Penguins hockey operations staff. Phil, meanwhile, became a key figure in those 2016 and ’17 championship runs, and he still talks about those years with obvious affection.
“Obviously the runs in Pittsburgh, you'll always remember those,” Phil said. “Those are my favorite years, right?
Because as everyone knows, it's so hard to win. And we had a great group there, and we had a ton of fun, and a lot of great guys played.
Some are still playing. Those years just stick out to me.
Obviously, integral years to my career, and 10 years - it seems like yesterday that we did it. It goes by fast, right?”
After Pittsburgh, he spent three seasons with the Arizona Coyotes before winning another Stanley Cup in his final NHL season in 2022-23 with the Vegas Golden Knights. Phil has lived in Arizona with his family since then and said he’s “playing a lot of golf.”
He also spoke warmly about his time in Pittsburgh, saying, “The fans, the city - they love their sports, they love the Penguins. They treated me so well there.
I'll be forever grateful for the city and the organization,” and adding, “I still have tons of friends outside of hockey there that I still talk to today. I couldn't be more proud to be a Pittsburgh Penguin and part of the culture and the city there and that organization.”
Amanda said that while she loved watching those Penguins teams from the outside, her own biggest hockey moments came in tournaments like the Olympics and the World Championships. That’s why the Hall of Fame call caught her off guard.
“It's something that was unexpected, getting a call a couple months ago. I think since then it really hasn't sunk in, just because this is what I did my whole life,” Amanda said.
“You know, this is me. We didn't really have a steady professional women's hockey league at the time, so USA Hockey really was everything for the women's game.”
The induction celebration will take place on November 30 in Washington, D.C., where the Class of 2026 will be formally enshrined and the NHL’s Lester Patrick Trophy will also be presented.
Phil said he’s simply grateful for the honor and especially for the chance to share it with his sister. “I'm just happy to be inducted,” he said.
“Obviously, I'm excited to go in with my sister. She was a great player.
This is a great class.”
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