'HBK' line snubs Colbert over Kessel's fear of flying in small plane

Phil Kessel can flat out fly on the ice, but his reluctance to board small planes apparently cost his linemates a late-night TV appearance.

Nick Bonino revealed that the vaunted "HBK" line - made up of himself, Kessel, and Carl Hagelin - was forced to decline an invite to "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" after winning the Stanley Cup last weekend.

"Me, Haggy, and Phil were invited to Stephen Colbert and we were going to go on the day after we won or the day after we got back," Bonino told the Pardon My Take podcast.

"They sent an eight-person jet, and Phil was like, 'No, it's too small,' because he's afraid to fly, so he cancelled the whole show. (He) wouldn't get on the private jet. Me and Haggy are like, 'F---, man, we're never going to get to go on Colbert without you, and (Kessel) just went to sleep and that was it. Never heard from him again."

Kessel's postseason performance nearly earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy, and his eccentricities will surely fly with his teammates as long as he continues to deliver on the ice.