Jason Spezza is entering the final year of his contract with the Dallas Stars. But after an abysmal 2017-18 campaign, there are rumblings that he may be dealt in the offseason. Should the Stars hang on to him or is it time to move on?
If you had to pick one Dallas Stars player that didn’t live up to expectations this past year, who would you pick?
Would it be Kari Lehtonen, who served spectacularly as a backup goaltender but faltered entirely when asked to be the starter? Or would you go with Martin Hanzal, who signed a generous contract on July 1 but only played 38 games in his first season with the team?
While those two are viable options, it’s difficult not to choose Jason Spezza as the top candidate. After all, his performance during the 2017-18 season was an unexpected and unsettling disaster.
Let’s backtrack for a second to July 1, 2014. The Dallas Stars, fresh off of their first playoff berth in five seasons, seemed to be the next team on the rise. However, they still had some weak points that needed addressing before they could be a contender. One of those was the lack of a true no. 2 center to back up Tyler Seguin and round out a threatening top six for the team.
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That’s why they went out and traded for Jason Spezza. At the time, Spezza was in his prime at the age of 31 and had just wrapped up a successful 11th year with the Senators.
And through his first three seasons with Dallas, he proved to be a solid acquisition. With 17 goals and 62 points in his first year matched with 33 goals and 63 points in his second year, Spezza was an ideal no. 2 center. And even through a 2016-17 year plagued with injuries, the center still found a way to put up 15 goals and 50 points in 68 games.
But then this past season came along, and all of that promise seemed to evaporate. Though he skated in 78 games, Spezza put up a measly eight goals and 26 points along with a -12 rating. It’s the worst season statistically of his 15-season career and left a lot to be desired.
“Obviously, not how I expected things to go, either,” Spezza said about on exit interview day about his off year. “I’m disappointed and it was a learning experience probably for me. I just know that I have to move forward and make some adjustments but obviously not the way I wanted things to go.”
And when you try and dig out why Spezza’s production took such a severe drop-off, a lot of it boils down to the relationship between player and coach. Ken Hitchcock only lasted one season in his second stint with the Stars. But in his one season behind the bench, he made it clear that Spezza was not one of his “go-to guys.”
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“For a guy that didn’t get many points, he sure had a lot of scoring chances,” Hitchcock said on exit interview day. “I think that’s like anything else. When you are normally a scoring player, that can be very frustrating. I thought there were times where he was very frustrated.”
Spezza’s average playing time was cut significantly from 16:10 in 2016-17 to 13:00 this past season. While it is natural to see a drop in playing time as a player ages, that was a significant drop for a guy that believes he still has a lot of good play left in him.
He was filtered throughout the lineup at the beginning of the season but was eventually left to play with grinders like Remi Elie and Jason Dickinson. As a center built on puck handling and possession, it was a pointless setup for no. 90 and he struggled to produce as a result.
“I feel good physically,” said Spezza on exit interview day. “I played the whole year relatively injury-free right up until the end. I feel like I got a lot of good years left in me. Mentally, I love the game and I enjoy coming to the rink every day. It’s not a burden for me to practice or do anything. I’m optimistic about the future for me.
“I just have to learn from how things went this season and move forward, and that’s part of being a professional.”
At the end of the year, it was obvious that Spezza, who has one season left in his contract extension at $7.5 million, would not remain on the roster if Hitchcock were still head coach for 2018-19. The trust wasn’t there and it was a major waste of cap space to hold onto an aging veteran that wasn’t being given the role he needed to succeed.
“I think you have to have a defined role on the team. Whatever that defined role is, you have to play to it and play to your strengths. You have to have a clear understanding of what the expectations are and try to be a good teammate. That’s what I tried to do this year.” -Jason Spezza
With Hitchcock gone, that question is answered. But even so, there is still plenty of lingering doubt as to whether Spezza will be a Star when next season rolls around. Does he still have enough to give to the Dallas offense? Or was his horrific 2017-18 performance a sign that the Dallas Stars would be better off freeing up the cap space and finding a way to dish Spezza? After all, there is likely a decent trade market for him and the Stars could use the cap space.
“I’ve got a deal next year until somebody tells me different,” Spezza said. “I’ve been talking about how we can move things forward here next year and obviously we’re all disappointed with where we’re at. I understand the speculation from people. But for me, I’m approaching it that I’m trying to figure out and get solved what’s going on here.”
This question likely won’t be answered until we get deeper into the summer, but it all boils down to one primary factor: can he fit in Jim Montgomery‘s system?
Spezza is confident that when given the right role, he can still thrive and play a big part for the Dallas Stars. But as a veteran, he has to have the right role. That’s where Montgomery comes in.
As the Stars’ newest head coach, it will be up to Montgomery to incorporate a system that works for his new team. We’ve already talked in depth about Montgomery’s current coaching styles and philosophies, and it seems like Spezza could find a solid role in the new system.
Monty recently spoke with no. 90 about his rough year in 2017-18 and about turning it around in the season ahead.
“I told him, ‘I like to play with the puck, and you like to play with the puck,'” Montgomery told Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. ‘Whatever happened last year or the last two years, you’ve had a great career, and I expect you to be at that level.’ Fire in someone’s belly is an incredible motivator, and we’ll see the best version of Jason Spezza we’ve seen in awhile.”
That sounds encouraging, right?
"“I think the expectation to score at a first line clip when you don’t play first line minutes is unrealistic. Compare this year numerically to my past years is, I don’t think a proper way to assess it. Moving forward, I have to try and find a bigger role and a better way to contribute.” -Jason Spezza"
I personally think that Jason Spezza still has a good amount of fire left in him and could turn in a surprisingly productive year with the Dallas Stars in 2018-19. But it all depends on if Jim Nill and Jim Montgomery see him as a part of the immediate future.
When Jason Spezza joined the Stars in 2014, it was on the expectation that he would serve as a viable no. 2 center and provide Dallas with offensive depth. And for the majority of his time with the team, he’s done just that.
But one bad season for an aging veteran with a large salary always raises plenty of red flags. With one season left on his contract, now is an ideal time to trade him if that is the Stars’ plan. But if it’s not, this final year will be one last opportunity for Spezza to prove his case and help the Dallas offense reach new heights.
Will he be a Dallas Star next year? If not, what will the Stars do with him? If so, how will he factor into the lineup? There’s plenty of questions left to be answered. But things seem to be panning out in a favorable way for both Spezza and the franchise.
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What we know right now is that Spezza is still a Star and fervently believes that he can still play a significant role on the team. That’s about all you can ask for from a veteran leader at this point. Now he just has to prove it.