Through pressure, success, Spezza's road to 1,000 games paved by family

MONTREAL --Jason Spezza was just 15 when he was being compared to Wayne Gretzky ... in Toronto … the center of the hockey universe.
And yet, as he gets ready to play his 1,000th regular season NHL game on Tuesday night in Montreal, he seems to have handled everything pretty well. Spezza is having a comeback season at age 35 and has weathered the pressures that come with high expectations. In fact, he's never really let them bother him much at all.
"He's always been so grounded and focused," said dad, Rino Spezza, who coached Jason when he was young. "I was the one who was nervous or got too wrapped up in everything that was going on. He just took it all in stride."

Spezza credits his parents -- Rino and Donna -- for a solid upbringing that allowed him to navigate some pretty rough waters. He said that while it was strange to be a celebrity who was a favorite of TV personality Don Cherry, he also was just a kid who liked video games and playing hockey.
"I just loved hockey, and so that's what I remember," Spezza said. "I remember coming home and playing road hockey or going down to the basement and playing down there with my brother (Matthew). That was all I wanted to do, so it was pretty simple to me."

Spezza was always asked to play with older players, and Rino said he was sometimes protective of his young son.
"But Jason always said, No, dad, I want to see what I can do," Rino said. "I remember we were standing just outside the glass at the practice for the All-Star Game (in 2000 at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena) and I was commenting how big they were or what good skaters they were, and Jason would say,Dad, I can't think that way. I've got to play against these guys in a couple of years.' He was always that way: analytical, and calm."
Spezza said he was actually lucky with some of his experiences -- as they helped shape his patience during high-pressure times. While he was projected as the first overall pick in the 2001, he went second behind Ilya Kovalchuk.
"I knew beforehand that Atlanta was taking Kovalchuk, so that wasn't too bad," he said. "I definitely wanted to go first overall, but I understood, and he proved Atlanta right by being a great player."
Spezza went to Ottawa with the second pick, and things got tough in the first couple of years.

While Kovalchuk was scoring 29 goals among 51 points as an NHL rookie, Spezza was returned to junior hockey. He split his time between Windsor and Belleville and tallied 105 points in 53 games. That gave him a call-up to the Senators' AHL team in Grand Rapids for the playoffs in 2002.
The next season, Spezza split time between Ottawa and its new AHL affiliate in Binghamton. And while he jumped up to the NHL full-time in 2003-04, he went back to the AHL during the NHL lockout in 2004-05.
"Ottawa made me earn it, that's for sure," Spezza said. "I know I wasn't happy at the time. But I think in the long run, it made me more patient and made me appreciate it more."
And possibly lowered the expectations.
Several of the Stars players grew up in the Greater Toronto Area, and they know the pressure that comes with being a hockey player, so they understand what Spezza has gone through.

"It's nuts up there, the media coverage and the expectations for those top-end players," said Devin Shore, who grew up in Ajax, Ontario. "You definitely know the best 14- or 15-year-olds up there, everyone is talking about them."
When Shore finally got to meet Spezza as a teammate, he said he was impressed by what a great person he is.
"He's one of the best teammates I've ever had," Shore said. "He's got a great head on his shoulders, he's a good communicator a good leader. There are very few who are students of the game like Spezz, so he's a great guy to look up to. I remember being very comfortable around him very early in my first year, and for a guy of that stature to treat you like that, it's pretty special."
Spezza actually values those relationships, and the ones with his family, more than the hockey accolades. He said growing up in a traditional Italian family surrounded him with a value system.
"I mean, it's cliché, but I grew up in an Italian, hard-working family, and we were very close and very supportive," Spezza said. "So I wanted the same thing for my family. Family is very important to me."

Spezza and his wife, Jennifer, have four daughters -- Sophia, Nicola, Anna and Julia -- and he said they are very understanding.
"I was no fun this summer, because all I wanted to do was work out and have a good season," he said, "and my wife was fully on board. She knew how much it meant to me."
Ironically enough, Rino Spezza said the summer workouts proved just how balanced his son is.
"He would come back from really pushing himself, and then he would go right to spending time with the kids," he said. "I liked that."
All of it seems to be a part of the painting that is Spezza at 1,000 games. But the 35-year-old doesn't want this milestone to be his hockey headstone. His contract is up at the end of the year, but he said he's not thinking about the end.

Yes, he would love to continue to work in hockey in some capacity when he's done, but he said he's not close to done yet.
"I want to play as long as I'm contributing," Spezza said. "I think I can play a few more years at a high level, and that's what I'm going to try to do."
"Sometimes, I think people were trying to read me my obituary last year and I wasn't having it. I don't think this is the end for me. I think it's just a nice chance to look back at my career so far."
A career that seen plenty of challenges and plenty of success.
"It's worked out pretty good," he said.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika,and listen to his podcast.