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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 checks Tanner Pearson (70) of the Los Angeles Kings against the boards during the game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Minnesota Wild on October 25 2018 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Minnesota Wild defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4-1. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ST. PAUL, MN – OCTOBER 25: Jared Spurgeon (46) of the Minnesota Wild checks Tanner Pearson (70) of the Los Angeles Kings against the boards during the game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Minnesota Wild on October 25 2018 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Minnesota Wild defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4-1. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Plus-minus up there with top-tier names

Spurgeon’s +57 for plus/minus is good enough to sit alone at 28th among all NHL D-men since 2010. He ranks higher than elite level defenders like P.K. Subban, Roman Josi, Shea Weber, John Carlson, and Marc Staal.

His defensive responsibility is a big part of his game, along with his speed, and it allows him to jump into the offensive rush without fear or hesitation. Spurgeon always believes his legs can cover for his aggressive play, and the majority of the time he is right.

The most surprising number among these, is Spurgeon’s lack of penalty minutes. 82 minutes over 8+ seasons. He is averaging less than 10 penalty minutes (or 5 minor penalties) per Minnesota Wild season. Among NHL defense with a minimum of 300 games played in the last 8 years, Spurgeon has the 5th fewest penalty minutes.

Comparing that with penalty minutes among all NHL players to play more than 300 games, Spurgeon ranks tied at 29th. Dissecting even further, among all NHL players to play a minimum of 500 games in the last 8 years, Jared Spurgeon is tied with Marcus Johansson for the 3rd fewest penalty minutes.

This tells me that no matter the situation, Spurgeon is always a defensively responsible player. He is in position most of the time, and in the situations where he gets caught on the chase his legs keep moving and he avoids taking bad penalties. Spurgeon will rarely put his team in a short-handed situation, which is something any coach will ask for of a top pairing defenseman.

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