Recently it was announced by the Minnesota Wild that they signed defenseman Jared Spurgeon to a four year deal worth $20.75 million. The undersized player is the unsung hero of the Wild as he has played most of his time this year with Ryan Suter, the big ticket signing from a few years ago.
So, what prompted the Wild to lock up a player that seems so pedestrian?
Spurgeon's alright… pic.twitter.com/EucOmKd9HI
— Domenic Galamini Jr. (@DomGalamini) December 21, 2015
It becomes very obvious why they wanted to lock him down during his prime years. His comparison to Keith may be generous at first glance but overall it makes sense. He more than holds his own in every single category. The cap hit is even going to be comparable to Keith while being in a deal that is five years older. The deal should turn out to be a boon for the Wild as they hold a lot of their key players in team-friendly long-term deals.
He is constantly underrated and will continue to be for quite some time. He is overshadowed by Suter and possibly even Brodin too. The case can be made for Spurgeon as one of the poster children of the undersized defensemen as they always get overlooked come draft time and when being evaluated by scouts.
As he continues to grow I am sure teams will catch on that size in fact doesn’t matter.
