Everyone in Ottawa loves to hate Dany Heatley, and after this season there's been no small amount of grumbling about Jason Spezza.  Heatley didn't show up for the playoffs this year, and some say Spezza didn't show up for this season.  I wondered how the two matched up in the postseason.  Here's what I came up with, and remember:  I'm no Ryan Classic...

Let's start with Heatley's playoff performance.  Here's what he accomplished in 14 playoff games:

G

A

Pts

+/-

PIM

PPG

PPA

SHG

SHA

GW

GT

SOG

Pct

2

11

13

-7

16

1

5

0

0

0

0

45

.044

And here's Spezza's 6 games:

G

A

Pts

+/-

PIM

PPG

PPA

SHG

SHA

GW

GT

SOG

Pct

1

6

7

-3

4

1

3

0

0

0

0

24

.042

I realize we're comparing very different sample sizes here, but let's break this down to a per-game look:

Heatley:

G

A

Pts

+/-

PIM

PPG

PPA

SHG

SHA

GW

GT

SOG

Pct

0.14

0.79

0.93

-0.5

1.14

0.07

0.36

0

0

0

0

3.21

.044

Spezza:

G

A

Pts

+/-

PIM

PPG

PPA

SHG

SHA

GW

GT

SOG

Pct

0.17

1

1.17

-0.5

0.67

0.17

0.5

0

0

0

0

4

.043

Ignore the weird numbers there (and the fact that I can't format a table any better than I can do a back crossover), and let's concentrate on what's really important:  They're very even.  Now if we go back to the question of sample size (14 games for Heater versus 6 for Spezz), you have to wonder what Spezza would have accomplished had the Sens made it past round 1.  Spezza was better on the PP, averaged more SOG, and doesn't suck as a human being.  More importantly, let's examine what was expected from each of these guys in the playoffs.  I don't think anyone expected Spezz to really do anything more than what he'd been doing all season (and he didn't).  Heatley was a "hired gun" that misfired badly.

I think the moral of the story is that Heatley still sucks, and we can stop all the "Trade Spezza" grumbling.  Spezza can deliver solid performance when he's on a line with good chemistry (and when Alfie isn't playing through a hernia).

Bottom line:  Spezza will improve, his nerdy laugh is still awesome, and he's never been outpitched by a 17-year-old-girl.