Early into his fourth season with the Canucks, Kesler was cross-checked in the face by Flyers forward Jesse Boulerice. The cross-check was an immediate response to Kesler hitting Flyers defenseman Randy Jones and resulted in Kesler leaving the game with a sore jaw. Boulerice was subsequently suspended for 25 games, matching the then largest suspension in NHL history. Later in the season, Kesler was involved in another violent on-ice incident when Anaheim Ducks defenseman Chris Pronger used his skate blade to stomp on Kesler's calf. Kesler was not injured on the play. Although the NHL originally announced Pronger would not receive a suspension on the play, he later received an eight-game suspension when new video emerged of the incident. Over the course of the season, Kesler established himself as a solid two-way center, scoring what was then a career-high 21 goals and 37 points and playing a regular shutdown role against opposing teams' top players and on the penalty kill with linemate Alexandre Burrows.