12-24-2019, 01:03 AM
The last 48 hours have been a perfect example of how Jason Spezza is the most polarizing figure on the Senators roster. Slater Martin Jersey . On Monday night, many fans in this city placed the blame squarely on the captain for his role in the James Neal overtime winner against the Pittsburgh Penguins. But the very next night, Spezza answered his critics with a clutch three-point performance that included a pair of beautiful assists in a stunning 5-4 shootout victory over the St. Louis Blues. On both nights, our radio station was flooded with calls and e-mails from fans wanting to talk about Spezza. The first night we heard from his detractors and, on the second, we heard from his defenders. Its a predictable pattern with the fans here in Ottawa. When Spezza plays poorly, his critics say you cannot win with him. When he generates offence, the negative comments disappear into the cold night air. There is no arguing that Spezza has had a rough season in 2013-14. In many ways, Spezza is having a similar season to Eric Staal in Carolina. Staal has 14 goals and 44 points and was left off Team Canadas roster because of his slow start. Spezza has 15 goals and 42 points – numbers that look awfully similar to Staals. The Sens captain sits 24th in scoring amongst centremen in the NHL, a ranking that suggests that he is still a legitimate number-one centre in a 30-team league. Spezza is also only one point behind Kyle Turris on the team scoring list without the luxury of playing with the same quality of linemates so far this season. And while everyone can agree that Turris is trending upwards, most believe that the opposite is true for Spezza. Those who are into analytics have been trumpeting Spezzas poor Corsi numbers all season long as tangible proof of his declining skills. After Monday nights loss, where Spezza failed to clear the puck out of his own zone, many fans who arent into advanced stats said they had reached their breaking point with the captain. We were bombarded with "Trade Spezza" e-mails and calls and there seemed like a growing distaste for his style of play in Ottawa. One of the most common complaints I heard from fans is that Spezza needs to earn his $7 million salary. But what fans need to remember about Spezza is that his contract is set up very favorably for next season. While he carries a cap hit of $7 million, he will actually only get paid $4 million in actual money for the 2014-15 campaign. (Spezza is being paid $5 million this season as his front-loaded contract starts to decline). And for a team like Ottawa that is desperate to reach the salary cap floor, this contract is an absolute dream. For next season, the Sens are getting $3 million of salary cap space eaten up for nothing. If the Sens were a spend-to-the-cap team, this deal would be an issue for them, but the exact opposite is true and that is why I would expect the Senators to hang onto their captain. He gives them $7 million of salary cap space for the price of $4 million. And now ask yourself this important question: Would you pay Jason Spezza $4 million to play next season? Of course you would. In a world where the oft-injured Martin Havlat will be making $6 million next season and Mike Ribeiro will be making $5.5 million, Spezza is absolutely a bargain at $4 million in real dollars. He wont even rank among the top 50 forwards in salary next season. As his salary is lowered, perhaps the expectations on Spezza could follow suit. He is 30 years old and no longer surrounded by snipers like Dany Heatley and Daniel Alfredsson. But at $4 million dollars next season, Jason Spezza will be worth every penny that he is paid. Dwight Eddleman Jersey . Louis second-period goal increased the New York Rangers lead but Dustin Brown has countered for the Los Angeles Kings who now trail the New York Rangers 2-1 in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final at Madison Square Garden. Jim Washington Jersey .C. - Heat coach Erik Spoelstra says Danny Granger, Chris Andersen and Udonis Haslem are still not ready to play and will miss Wednesday nights game against the Charlotte Hornets. https://www.cheaphawks.com/1214r-shareef...hawks.html . The above paragraph could be rewritten, verbatim, with Marcus Stromans name in place of Romeros. After both men had disastrous outings in Tuesdays 18-4 mauling at the hands of the Tigers, its clear that neither is the best option to begin the season in Toronto.Jacksonville, FL - Joshua Dobbs accounted for 205 yards and the Tennessee Volunteers cruised past the Iowa Hawkeyes, 45-28, in the TaxSlayer Bowl on Friday. Dobbs threw for 129 yards with a touchdown and an interception, while rushing for 76 yards with two scores for the Vols (7-6), who won four of their last five to end the season. Jalen Hurd had a strong performance with 122 yards on the ground and added two touchdowns in the win. Jordan Canzeri paced the Hawkeyes (7-6) with 120 rushing yards on 12 carries, while Mark Weisman had two rushing touchdowns. Iowa used a pair of quarterbacks in C.J. Beathard and Jake Rudock throughout the day. Beathard finished with 145 passing yards with two touchdowns and an interception to go along with 82 rushing yards. Rudock threw for 32 yards and rushed for 22 in the loss. The first quarter belonged to the Volunteers. They made stops and scored often. Iowa was forced to punt after reaching midfield on its opening drive. Tennessee used a heavy dose of the ground game, running seven of the nine plays with Hurd accounting for 42 yards on four carries. He capped the 80-yard march with a 3-yard touchdown to give the Vols a 7-0 lead. Tennessee was tested on the Hawkeyes next possession, but Weisman was stuffed on 4th-and-1 from the Vols 33. Hurd took advantage five plays into the series, barreling up the middle, bouncing off multiple tackles and into the end zone. Following another Iowa punt, Marlin Lane took a backward pass out of the back field from Dobbs, then completeed a 49-yard pass to an open Vic Wharton and extend the margin to 21-0 with 1:31 remaining in the first. Pete Maravich Jersey. Tennessee continued to pour it on in the second. Dobbs rolled out and weaved his way into the end zone for an 8-yard score as the lead stretched to 28-0. The Hawkeyes finally got on the board with a drive that covered 71 yards over 4:30. Weisman capped it with a 3-yard TD run. Dobbs, who went 11-of-12 passing for 81 yards over first two quarters, concluded his teams dominant half with a 19-yard touchdown pass to Von Pearson on nice back-shoulder fade at the pylon. Hurd, meanwhile, rushed for 97 yards in the first half, while Iowas team gained 68 rushing yards by the break. Dobbs kept up his remarkable day with an 11-yard scoring run that pushed the lead to 35 with 7:46 left in the third. He threw an interception following a Beathard fumble, but Beathard was then picked off by LaDarrell McNeil inside the Tennessee 10. Weisman plunged into the end zone from a yard out early in the fourth. Aaron Medley booted a 28-yard field goal at the other end for a 45-14 lead with 8:31 on the clock. The Hawkeyes closed the scoring with a touchdown passes from Beathard to Ray Hamilton and Matt VandeBerg late in the fourth. Game Notes Tennessee now leads the all-time series 2-1 ... Iowa dropped five of its last seven after a 5-1 start ... The Vols had a 461-421 edge in total yards ... The Hawkeyes went 3-for-11 on third down ... Pearson finished with a game-high 75 yards in the win. ' ' '