If there was any lingering doubt in the minds of Sens fans when it came to the future of Captain Jason Spezza, a series of tweets this weekend should confirm the inevitable…
Jason Spezza’s time in Ottawa is all but over.
As we talked about on this site back in early-April, Jason Spezza has indicated to the team that he would be open to a trade and that he’s ready to move on. The timing sort of works out for the Senators because with Spezza entering the last year of his deal, they were going to have to make a decision on whether or not to commit to him long term. In some ways, that decision was made for them.
Spezza trade rumors stem in part from Spezza exit interview when he reportedly told OTT ownership/management he may look favorably on move.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) May 12, 2014
McKenzie is a little bit off on this one in that Spezza had already given the team an indication that he would be open to the trade during the season, prior to the trade deadline. The tweet from McKenzie seems to suggest that Spezza confirmed those desires during his season ending exit interview.
Kypreos was the one who got the ball rolling last night suggesting that both Spezza and Leafs Captain Dion Phaneuf could be on the move this summer. The fact that Spezza is available certainly doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone but maybe the fact that they are already shopping him does.
Ontario captains on the way out soon? Independent sources say both #Sens and #Leafs shopping Spezza/ Phaneuf to west conf #NHL teams
— Nick Kypreos (@RealKyper) May 11, 2014
And then if he left any doubt, Kypreos was on Toronto radio this morning and all but confirmed what we have been preparing ourselves for for the last month or so.
Kypreos “most definitely Spezza’s days as a Senator are over”
— Hope_Smoke (@Hope_Smoke) May 12, 2014
St. Louis, Anaheim, Colorado and Edmonton have all shown initial interest. Phoenix, Nashville, Florida and even Toronto all seem like a good fit.
Now it’s up to Sens GM Bryan Murray to maximize the return. For some this news will come as a bit of a surprise but the writing has been on the wall since the season ending media availabilities in the middle of April. The tone was pretty clear that day and yesterday’s news only confirms what many of us already suspected…
Answers from Spezza, Melnyk and Murray make it abundantly clear- Jason Spezza’s time in Ottawa is up. #Sens
— SensChirp (@SensChirp) April 15, 2014
