ALL Spezza talk - to trade, not to trade, rant, rave etc.

What interest is there in Spezza? His contract is a pretty big one to swallow...

oh that's awesome. Murray should get on that....but don waddell ain't that stupid.

Back to spezz....michalek and alfie are good together and Fisher between them would be a very interesting hard working line. Spezza is not adding anything to that line and he should finally get tried out with kovalev. Keep shannon on that line. If he still stinks up the joint....hmm....call jim rutherford and ask for eric staal in return

Michallica wrote:oh that's awesome. Murray should get on that....but don waddell ain't that stupid.

Back to spezz....michalek and alfie are good together and Fisher between them would be a very interesting hard working line. Spezza is not adding anything to that line and he should finally get tried out with kovalev. Keep shannon on that line. If he still stinks up the joint....hmm....call jim rutherford and ask for eric staal in return

OK, I just watched the first period from last night. I get that he's not playing well enough for the money he makes, but some of us *cough* are writing as if he's absolutely useless.

I counted numerous times that he set up prime scoring chances, including a goal-post by Alfredsson, and outmuscled players behind the net. The problem is he's not producing, but the key argument so far has been that he's doing nothing outside of his statistics. I'm not sure I buy that.

Rumour has it Staal could be had for a young top-6 forward and a young defenceman.

Spezza + Lee for Staal?

So you risk screwing up the chemistry with Kovalev and Fisher to get Spezza going? Dont like that idea. Give him Cheechoo and Ruutu or something. Anyways, it doesnt matter, the guy cant get it done.

asq2 wrote:Rumour has it Staal could be had for a young top-6 forward and a young defenceman.

Spezza + Lee for Staal?

I would do that in a heart beat

asq2 wrote:Rumour has it Staal could be had for a young top-6 forward and a young defenceman.

Spezza + Lee for Staal?

I'm asking this seriously: is there a difference between the two players?

asq2 wrote:OK, I just watched the first period from last night. I get that he's not playing well enough for the money he makes, but some of us *cough* are writing as if he's absolutely useless.

I counted numerous times that he set up prime scoring chances, including a goal-post by Alfredsson, and outmuscled players behind the net. The problem is he's not producing, but the key argument so far has been that he's doing nothing outside of his statistics. I'm not sure I buy that.

Well at a certain point you need him to stop setting up chances and start setting up some Diddling goals.

15 points for our "#1 center" in 24 games is ridiculously unacceptable.

He has the fewest points of all the #1 centers in the league and less than most of the second line centers too.

We just can't succeed as a team when our top money guys aren't playing that way. It used to always be "we can't succeed unless we get the big line some help" and now it's become the total opposite. And it's not like he doesn't have help on the team between Alfredsson, Michalek, Kovalev, Fisher, Foligno and the rest of the cast who are all contributing.

This guy should be making other players better...and I'm afraid for the last 24 games at least, and possibly well into most of last year as well, he just hasn't been doing that.

SpezDispenser wrote:

asq2 wrote:Rumour has it Staal could be had for a young top-6 forward and a young defenceman.

Spezza + Lee for Staal?

I'm asking this seriously: is there a difference between the two players?

A Stanley Cup.

asq2 wrote:OK, I just watched the first period from last night. I get that he's not playing well enough for the money he makes, but some of us *cough* are writing as if he's absolutely useless.

I counted numerous times that he set up prime scoring chances, including a goal-post by Alfredsson, and outmuscled players behind the net. The problem is he's not producing, but the key argument so far has been that he's doing nothing outside of his statistics. I'm not sure I buy that.

Yeah, I give him credit for setting things up, but his play doesn't get better after the first. That was his good period.

My hope is that he conquers whatever injuries/confidence issues he has and gets back to the dominating PPG+ guy that I used to love so much. That's my hope.

PKC wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:

asq2 wrote:Rumour has it Staal could be had for a young top-6 forward and a young defenceman.

Spezza + Lee for Staal?

I'm asking this seriously: is there a difference between the two players?

A Stanley Cup.

PKC wrote:
A Stanley Cup.

And? The Canes took on the 8th seed from the West and barely squeezed by. We took on the best team of the last 5 years and got crushed. Would Staal have changed anything that happened vs Anaheim? No.

asq2 wrote:Rumour has it Staal could be had for a young top-6 forward and a young defenceman.

Spezza + Lee for Staal?

Funny. That would be like hand in glove if it were for real.

PKC wrote:

asq2 wrote:OK, I just watched the first period from last night. I get that he's not playing well enough for the money he makes, but some of us *cough* are writing as if he's absolutely useless.

I counted numerous times that he set up prime scoring chances, including a goal-post by Alfredsson, and outmuscled players behind the net. The problem is he's not producing, but the key argument so far has been that he's doing nothing outside of his statistics. I'm not sure I buy that.

Well at a certain point you need him to stop setting up chances and start setting up some Diddling goals.

15 points for our "#1 center" in 24 games is ridiculously unacceptable.

I'm not saying it is. I'm saying that the arguments against Spezza are supposed to be denigrating him in regards to what happens off the scoresheet. There's no question he needs to be on the scoresheet more often.

SpezDispenser wrote:

PKC wrote:
A Stanley Cup.

And? The Canes took on the 8th seed from the West and barely squeezed by. We took on the best team of the last 5 years and got crushed. Would Staal have changed anything that happened vs Anaheim? No.

I'm sorry but Staal has never had one player of the calibre of an Alfredsson or Heatley on his wing, let alone two.

He's a Stanley Cup champion and he had 28 points (9G, 19A) in that playoff run as well as another 15 points (10G, 5A) in last year's playoffs.

So it's not like he was just along for the ride.

So when is this deal going down? Before or after the Filatov deal?

asq2 wrote:

PKC wrote:

asq2 wrote:OK, I just watched the first period from last night. I get that he's not playing well enough for the money he makes, but some of us *cough* are writing as if he's absolutely useless.

I counted numerous times that he set up prime scoring chances, including a goal-post by Alfredsson, and outmuscled players behind the net. The problem is he's not producing, but the key argument so far has been that he's doing nothing outside of his statistics. I'm not sure I buy that.

Well at a certain point you need him to stop setting up chances and start setting up some Diddling goals.

15 points for our "#1 center" in 24 games is ridiculously unacceptable.

I'm not saying it is. I'm saying that the arguments against Spezza are supposed to be denigrating him in regards to what happens off the scoresheet. There's no question he needs to be on the scoresheet more often.

I'm not saying he's never trying...but you can't argue the fact that he looks lost out there most of the time. And it's not like it's a team thing either. Other guys, namely the Fishers, Michaleks and Alfredssons of the team are out there going to the net, getting dirty, simplifying their game, not trying to be cute with the puck all the time. And then you have Jason who's more predictable than an episode of Days of Our Lives with the puck, always curling at the half boards, always trying to get 60 feet across the ice from one half board to the other.

Notice how our goals have been scored this year, by throwing the puck on net and getting bodies in there. Not by trying to dangle through everyone in the first level of seating and then trying to spin around with your stick and throw the puck out to a defender.

It's pathetic. He's paid to be creative, to draw attention to him, to make players better by putting them into above average scoring chances. All I see is players on his line confused by his play, not knowing where to go. And I can't honestly be convinced that he doesn't have linemates that are skilled enough to finish his plays. That's just Dung.