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Does Jason Spezza want out of Ottawa?

Ottawa Senators v New York Islanders

of the New York Islanders of the Ottawa Senators on April 3, 2010 at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.

Jim McIsaac

A year after Dany Heatley forced a messy divorce with the Ottawa Senators, rumors are swirling that talented-but-frustrating center Jason Spezza might want a trade too. After all, he must have a bad taste in his mouth after home fans booed him toward the end of the team’s first round match with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The shifty playmaker commands a hefty $7 million contract that runs through the 2014-15 season, so his team might be just as interested in moving him as Spezza could be to leave. For their part, both parties are saying the right things. The National Post shares that Spezza claims he wants to be back in Ottawa while Senators GM Bryan Murray thinks that things will settle down as emotions subside during the summer.

“I got an impression that he was quite unhappy at the end,” Senators general manager Bryan Murray told Sportsnet in regards to his season-ending meeting with Spezza. “I think the coverage he felt he got and the fan reaction a couple of times left him kind of wanting a little bit. But I don’t think it’s anything beyond that. My next conversation with him will be away from the emotion of playoff time to see what we can do and what we have to do.”

While Spezza said his meeting with Murray was confidential, he hinted that he was unhappy with the response he received from fans.

“There’s always things that happen at the end of the year,” said Spezza, who finished the season with 23 goals and 57 points in 60 games. “Just kind of airing out what I thought and what he thought. It’s always good to have conversations and good communications.”

Despite being a bit leaky on the defensive side of the ice, Spezza produced some nice results at times last season. He was just short of a point per game with 57 points in 60 games and contributed greatly during the Senators sporadic hot streaks.

Can the team really withstand the loss of 2/3 of what was once perhaps the best line in hockey (Heatley, Spezza and Daniel Alfredsson)? At the same time, Spezza is a pricey player, even for his solid production. It sounds like this situation is a lot healthier than the Heatley fiasco, but that doesn’t mean Spezza’s guaranteed to be a Senator in the future. We’ll just have to wait and see.