That’s what stands between Jason Spezza and an elusive Stanley Cup.
Of course, you don’t get as deep into your career as the Toronto Maple Leafs forward without learning about the value of staying in the moment. Especially entering the playoffs.
“One step at a time,” Spezza said on a recent Zoom call with reporters, when the topic of a potential storybook finish to this strange season was raised.
Spezza is a compelling figure at the dawn of a qualifying-round series with Columbus. It was this specific opportunity that prompted the 37-year-old to take a hometown discount while signing with his hometown team, and the unprecedented circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have since forced him to leave wife Jennifer and their four daughters at home while moving into the NHL bubble a short drive away.
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Throughout hockey’s pause Spezza has “stepped up,” in the words of Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe, taking an active role in the return-to-play discussions with the NHL Players’ Association and becoming an even more trusted voice among teammates.
“He’s a veteran player in the league and he’s experienced a lot of different things. And he’s a guy that’s passionate about the game and he’s also passionate about his game and his career and having another shot to compete for the Cup,” said Keefe.
Spezza has lived a full hockey life: As the much-hyped prospect who once made his playoff debut in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final, as the No. 1 centre on a team that fell short in the Stanley Cup Final, as the well-travelled veteran still finding a way to contribute to a post-season run despite a limited role, and many other things in between.
That’s why the Leafs measure his impact by much more than goals and assists. It should come as no surprise, for example, that Spezza made it a point to speak with 18-year-old Nick Robertson at least once per day during summer training camp or that he stayed out well after a recent practice to feed Robertson passes for extra work on his one-timer.
“He’s one of the most caring guys you’ll meet,” Ben Bishop, Spezza’s former teammate in Dallas, said earlier this season. “If there’s a rookie that comes up from the minors, Spezz is the first one to go sit next to him and talk hockey.”
There are two things that keep Spezza coming to the rink with a smile on his face each day no matter what personal circumstances he may be dealing with:
1. A child-like love for the game 2. A burning desire to lift the Stanley Cup
And not necessarily in that order.
On the topic of the Cup, he can serve as something of a cautionary tale for 22-year-old Auston Matthews, 23-year-old Mitch Marner and 24-year-old William Nylander. Spezza played in Game 7 of the 2003 Eastern Conference Final before his 20th birthday and was Marner’s age when he helped the Ottawa Senators reach the Cup Final four years later.
The Senators were a force with him, Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley each in their primes together. And yet they never managed to be the last team standing.
“He really just is a great voice within our team through his experience, and not all positive experiences,” said Keefe.
“I played on great teams early on and you think they’re going to last forever and then you realize that things change,” Spezza said in September. “Those three years we had there [in Ottawa], we were knocking on the door and probably should have won. We were a perennial powerhouse for a few years and didn’t get it done. You don’t want to see that happen again.”
As for what he might contribute now, know this: Back in the weeks before he’d even played his first game with the Leafs, Spezza was already talking about the role a fourth line can take on in the playoffs. He’d scored a couple big goals during Dallas’ run to the second round in 2019 and pointed to how Boston and St. Louis — the most recent Cup finalists — each found strength from the bottom part of their rosters.
“I think when you get to the end you need it,” he said.
So under these most unusual of circumstances Spezza will try to help tip the scales in Toronto’s favour. As a steadying hand, sounding board and dressing room dad. As a depth forward who will give it all he’s got for each precious shift Keefe gives him.
More than 17 years into his NHL career, Spezza is all-in on this restart. He will make do with regular FaceTime calls with daughters Sophia, Nicola, Anna and Julia, and adjust a pre-game routine that can no longer include a stroll through the city to grab a coffee.
And he will savour an opportunity decades in the making.
“Obviously being in Toronto would be extra special to win because of the support we get from the city and me growing up here,” said Spezza. “I’m definitely chasing a dream.
“To try to win a Stanley Cup as a Maple Leaf is something that I dreamed of as a kid.”
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
