Pros and Cons of Senators Keeping Jordan Spence – The Hockey Writers – Ottawa Senators

With just under $17 million in cap space heading into the offseason, it is expected that the Ottawa Senators will be active in adding to their roster. That may also mean letting go of current pieces to do that. They have a few unrestricted free agents, mainly Claude Giroux and Nick Cousins up front and Nick Jensen on the back end. But one undiscussed name gunning for a new contract is restricted free agent Jordan Spence. 

The Australian-born defender was acquired at last year’s draft from the Los Angeles Kings for a couple of mid-round picks and stood out in his first season with Ottawa, tallying 31 points in 73 games. You’d think Sens’ management would be willing to re-sign the 25-year-old defender after the season he had, but it also gives president and general manager Steve Staios another tough decision to make. 

Spence’s Solid Season: Why Should He Stay?

Simple: he’s flexible throughout the lineup. Spence played with eight different defenders this season, but played with Tyler Kleven the most. In 62 games together, the two registered the same expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60) as Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub at 1.87. 

Spence also got time with Sanderson and Thomas Chabot. Both pairings averaged an expected goals for per 60 minutes (xGF/60) of over 3.40 in 140-plus minutes together. He is also loved by analytics individually in a few areas, ranking top-20 amongst full-time defenders in on-ice goals percentage at 58.3% and was tops amongst all blueliners in xGA/60 at 2.11.

Mind you, Spence’s ride didn’t start smoothly. He was a healthy scratch for nine of the Sens’ first 14 games to start the season, including a stretch of five straight. Head coach Travis Green forced him to earn trust to be in the lineup, but thanks to injuries to Chabot and Sanderson around early November, Spence got his shot and ran with it. He stepped up his game defensively while putting up points on the second power-play unit to gain the trust of his coach. 

As a young, great skating defenceman with solid puck-moving skills, it should be a no-brainer to keep him, especially since Spence has some room to grow. But that’s just it – the Senators can’t afford to wait long as they are poised to be big-game players next season. As well, they already carry plenty of defencemen with the same style of play. 

The Problem With Keeping Him

Spence, Sanderson, Zub and Chabot all averaged 30-plus points this season. While defensive scoring depth is nice, Ottawa needs another legitimate, stable top-four guy, similar to Zub, who can help out on the defensive side at both even strength and on the penalty kill. Keeping Spence only creates a logjam of two-way style defenders, which might sound nice, but doesn’t always help certain teams.

As well, the Sens have to think about the growth of Carter Yakemchuk next season. Spence was considered the solid fourth-to-fifth option when he was first brought in, until Yakemchuk came along sooner than expected with a solid first five career games – four in the regular season and one in the playoffs, where he performed admirably with two assists. 

Ultimately, the righty to play with Kleven on the third pair comes down to either Yakemchuk or Spence, and it would be wiser for Ottawa to give that chance to their up-and-coming blueliner they selected seventh overall just two drafts ago.

Even more significant in this decision is how much cheaper one is than the other. If Spence is re-signed, he would carry between $3-5 million while Yakemchuk still has all three years left on his entry-level deal. Ottawa can cross that bridge when they get there, but they now have a much more affordable defender for the third pair, who also has room to grow, rather than Spence, who should get paid a good bit on his next deal.

What Should the Senators Do?

The only resolvable solution for both sides is a trade. Give Spence a chance to flourish and develop on another team that could use a potential top-four d-man. Maybe up-and-comers like the Chicago Blackhawks or San Jose Sharks? What about teams expected to overhaul their blue lines, like the Toronto Maple Leafs or Detroit Red Wings? 

With his performance this season and the two years prior with the Kings, Spence could easily generate more trade value than what Ottawa gave up to get him. He could be worth both a second and a third, but it is all about the fit, mainly for the team he would go to.

Instead of keeping Spence around and forcing him to grow into something more, the Senators need to upgrade the top-four position with an experienced, defence-first guy. Banking on Spence to completely morph his game in order to enter the next phase of contention is not fair to both the player and team.