Jason Spezza

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Spezza began his NHL career with Ottawa in 2002–03, playing 33 games and recording 21 points, scoring his first NHL goal on October 29, 2002, in a 2–1 loss against the Philadelphia Flyers. He played his first full NHL season in 2003–04, scoring 22 goals and 55 points in 78 games. During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Spezza returned to the AHL with the Binghamton Senators, scoring 117 points to win the John B. Sollenberger Trophy as the league's leading scorer and the Les Cunningham Award as league MVP. In 2005–06, he set a Senators franchise record with 71 assists and tallied 90 points in 68 games, playing on a line with Dany Heatley and Daniel Alfredsson known as the "CASH" or "Pizza" line. In the 2007 playoffs, Spezza recorded a franchise-record 22 points (seven goals and 15 assists) as the Senators reached the Stanley Cup Finals, losing to the Anaheim Ducks in five games. On February 9, 2008, he scored his first NHL hat-trick during a 6–1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens, contributing to all of his team's goals for a career-high six-point game. He finished the 2007–08 season tying his career-high in goals with 34 and establishing a new personal mark for points with 92. In 2011–12, Spezza finished fourth in league scoring with 84 points (34 goals and 50 assists).

In Their Own Story

The Senators faced the Anaheim Ducks but lost in five games, in large part because the Spezza–Heatley–Alfredsson line failed to perform against Samuel Påhlsson's checking line, backed by star defencemen Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger. Spezza finished the 2007 playoffs with a franchise-record 22 points (seven goals and 15 assists), tied with linemates Alfredsson and Heatley. On February 9, 2008, Spezza scored his first NHL hat-trick during a 6–1 Senators victory over the Montreal Canadiens, contributing to all of his team's goals for a career-high six-point game. In the 2010 playoffs, the Senators lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins four games to two, and Spezza's poor defensive play and costly turnovers resulted in him being booed by fans at Scotiabank Place. The following off-season was rife with speculation that he would be traded, and Spezza himself admitted he would not object to a trade from Ottawa, but ultimately no trade occurred.

Reader's Guide

Jason Spezza's tenure with the Ottawa Senators spanned from his draft in 2001 through the 2013–14 season. Selected second overall in the 2001 NHL entry draft by the Senators, he made his NHL debut in 2002–03. He played his first full NHL season in 2003–04, scoring 22 goals and 55 points in 78 games. During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Spezza returned to the AHL with the Binghamton Senators, scoring 117 points to win the John B. Sollenberger Trophy as the league's leading scorer and the Les Cunningham Award as league MVP. In 2005–06, he set a Senators franchise record with 71 assists and tallied 90 points in 68 games. He signed a new seven-year, $49 million contract with the Senators on November 2, 2007, effective from the 2008–09 season through to the 2014–15 season. Spezza finished the 2007–08 season tying his career-high in goals with 34 and establishing a new personal mark for points with 92. In 2011–12, he finished fourth in league scoring with 84 points (34 goals and 50 assists). Spezza served as team captain following the departure of Daniel Alfredsson. After his playing career, he spent a year in the Maple Leafs' front office before becoming assistant general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins and general manager of their AHL affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

Did You Know?

• Spezza was selected second overall in the 2001 NHL entry draft, after Ilya Kovalchuk was selected by the Atlanta Thrashers.
• He set an Ottawa Senators franchise record with 71 assists in 2005–06.
• Spezza won the Les Cunningham Award as AHL MVP with the Binghamton Senators in 2004–05.
• He scored his first NHL hat-trick on February 9, 2008, during a 6–1 Senators victory over the Montreal Canadiens.
• Spezza finished the 2007 playoffs with a franchise-record 22 points (seven goals and 15 assists).