Phil Kessel and the Penguins appeared to be at a standoff as the NHL Draft descended upon Vancouver last week. Actually, a standoff might have been better for the Penguins. This might have been something worse.



“He’s got a gun, knows what chamber the bullet’s in and can fire it whenever he wants,” said one person connected to the Penguins who spoke on condition of anonymity.



“That’s a bad feeling. But that’s how it feels.”



The Penguins have already tried and failed to trade Kessel. Despite general manager Jim Rutherford’s recent comments to the contrary, multiple team and league sources said the Penguins remain interested in dealing Kessel, preferably before the start of the free-agent period July 1.



Kessel does control a lot about his future. His contract, which runs for three more seasons, contains a clause that allows him to veto any trade, unless it is to one of eight teams Kessel has...