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Minnesota Wild: Just how underrated is Jared Spurgeon?

By Cody Defoe

LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 8: Jared Spurgeon #46 of the Minnesota Wild skates with the puck during the first period of the game against the Los Angeles Kings at STAPLES Center on November 8, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***
LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 8: Jared Spurgeon #46 of the Minnesota Wild skates with the puck during the first period of the game against the Los Angeles Kings at STAPLES Center on November 8, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NHLI via Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /
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ST. PAUL, MN - OCTOBER 25: Jared Spurgeon #46 of the Minnesota Wild takes a shot on goal during a game between the Minnesota Wild and Los Angeles Kings at Xcel Energy Center on October 25, 2018 in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Kings 4-1.(Photo by Bruce Kluckhohn/NHLI via Getty Images)
ST. PAUL, MN – OCTOBER 25: Jared Spurgeon #46 of the Minnesota Wild takes a shot on goal during a game between the Minnesota Wild and Los Angeles Kings at Xcel Energy Center on October 25, 2018 in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Kings 4-1.(Photo by Bruce Kluckhohn/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Defensive responsibility trumps scoring

While Spurgeon is not on an elite scoring level, like peers such as Brent Burns or Erik Karlsson, his proficiency at being responsible defensively counterbalances his perceived shortcomings in the goal scoring department.

59 goals has Jared Spurgeon tied at 25th among all NHL defensemen since 2010, alongside Dion Phaneuf. He has more goals in that time than perceived top pairing defensemen Ryan McDonagh, Cam Fowler, and even recent Stanley Cup winner Matt Niskanen (all three of whom have played more games than Spurgeon).

He also leads all Minnesota Wild defensemen over that time frame, including defensive partner Ryan Suter. Mathew Dumba is closing this gap extremely fast, and has asserted why the kid with the new contract is the consensus top-pairing defenseman now.

At 215 points, Spurgeon is sitting all alone at #40 on the list of points by a defender. While the placement looks good on paper, #40 among 30 teams each having 2 players on a top pairing, it would look like it fits the billing.

However, when comparing the players on the point list around him it looks a little more disconcerting. Spurgeon is sitting around T.J. Brodie, Mark Streit, and Erik Johnson level points numbers. All are great defenders, but none in the elite category.

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Jared Spurgeon is a consistent point scorer, but again he falls short of the guys who make the top money putting points on the board. Comparatively speaking, since the arrival of Bruce Boudreau to the Minnesota Wild in 2016-17; Spurgeon has improved tremendously.

In just over 2 seasons under coach Boudreau, Spurgeon has produced 85 points from the blueline. Those numbers have him tied with Kevin Shattenkirk, and only 10 points shy of ‘superstars’ such as Rasmus Ristolainen, Mark Giordano, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson with less games played than all of them.

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