OTTAWA - For the second straight year the Ottawa Senators have lost their captain on the opening day of NHL free agency. The Senators traded Jason Spezza, who was coming off his first year as captain, to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday for winger Alex Chiasson along with prospects Alex Guptill, Nicholas Paul and a second-round pick in 2015. Ottawa prospect Ludwig Karlsson was also part of the trade. Last year the Senators bid farewell to longtime captain Daniel Alfredsson after he chose to sign with the Detroit Red Wings. News of Spezzas departure was much less shocking to Senators fans, as the 31-year-old had requested a trade following the end of the season. "It was a combination of things and the fact I have one year left on my deal," said Spezza, when asked for the reasons behind the trade request. "Only having one year left on my contract I thought it was fair talking to Bryan (Murray) now so we dont get into a situation next year where were always talking about if Im extending or why Im not extending or whats going on moving forward. "I felt like it was best for me to move on and this was the appropriate time to take care of all this through the summer so that I can have a fresh start during the season and move on and the team can move on as well." Senators general manager Bryan Murray acknowledged this was a very difficult deal to be made. "As I said all along you dont get equal value for a skilled point getter, but with the request being three or four times made to us, and in spite of what everybody else says we didnt encourage any movement, we were asked if it would happen," said Murray. "I didnt want to go through another summer of issues … Dallas was the one option that I had. Jim Nill was very straightforward in what he could offer me." Murray told reporters that a contract extension had been offered and refused by Spezza. He said three trade offers had been in play at the NHL draft last weekend, but disappeared as the days went by leaving the Dallas offer as the lone deal on the table. The Senators would like to add another centre to their lineup and Murray said hes working on a deal that he hopes to finalize soon. With Spezzas departure Murray sees the Senators forging a new identity and believes Chiasson will fit right in. "Weve always wanted to shift to a hard working, competitive team that we had two years ago and then last year for some reason we got off the track," said Murray. "Were going to try and get that back on track." Chiasson, who had 13 goals and 35 points with the Stars last season, is the centrepiece of the trade, but in no way will the 23-year-old replace Spezza. Love him or hate him, Spezza was a point-per-game player over his 11 seasons with the Senators. In 686 games Spezza scored 251 goals and had 687 points. Spezza is in the final year of his contract with a $7 million cap hit and $4 million in actual salary. Over the course of his career Spezza has often been a lightning rod for criticism, and things seemed to come to a head this season for the veteran centre. When asked whether or not he felt the criticism was fair, Spezza said it came with the responsibility of being a star player. "I was the highest paid guy on the team and the guy who had been there for a long time so fingers were pointed at me at times, but I also got credit at times," Spezza said. "When you play in a Canadian market and you play in a city like that and youre in the same spot for a long time if you expect not to have the finger pointing you have unrealistic expectations. So at times the finger was pointing at me, but it was the reality of the situation that I was in." Spezza said his decision didnt come lightly and that he will miss many things about Ottawa, but in the end he was looking for a team that would give him the best chance at winning a Stanley Cup. Fans will remember that Alfredsson uttered nearly the exact same words last year after signing with Detroit. With two of its top players bolting from the organization one has to wonder what effect this will have on the Senators reputation. Murray is clearly frustrated by the perception that Ottawa is being viewed as a frugal team thats not willing to spend. "Ive never had one player Ive called and asked if they would be interested in coming to Ottawa say No Im worried about the money on your team and I wouldnt come," said Murray. "Perception is what you make it to be and what you really believe to be true. I think players know they come here and are treated well." Despite losing Spezza and Alfredsson in the span of two years, Murray said the team wont be forced to go into a rebuild. "No, were past that," said Murray. "Were going to have a good hockey team. Were going to compete. We lose a little bit at centre ice, we gain a little bit on the wing, weve got a couple of young guys coming that are going to be a different brand of player…I think our team is going to be really competitive, hard working group of people. I think were going to be well off going forward." Joining Spezza in Dallas is Ales Hemsky, who turned down an offer from the Senators for a contract extension. Hemsky was acquired at the trade deadline and showed chemistry with Spezza, but knowing the captain wanted out left Hemsky with little reason to remain in Ottawa. Both players said they were looking forward to being reunited in Dallas. The Senators did re-sign left-wing Milan Michalek to a three-year, $12-million contract Tuesday. Murray said Michalek had been offered a five-year offer elsewhere, but chose to remain in Ottawa. Joe Theismann Jersey . 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He considered undergoing platelet-rich plasma therapy to fix his arm, but announced in August his decision to have Tommy John surgery. Russ Grimm Jersey . It will mark the 22nd time the tournament has been held in this country and fourth in Atlanta Canada but will make its first appearance ever in played Nova Scotia.MONTREAL -- The Hamilton Bulldogs couldnt recover from two goals in quick succession. Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Buddy Robinson scored 43 seconds apart in the second period to lead the Binghamton Senators to a 4-1 victory over the Bulldogs in American Hockey League action Friday night at the Bell Centre. The goals came off defensive lapses - missed coverage, and a mistake by goaltender Dustin Tokarski. Pageau was left alone in the slot for the equalizer, and Robinson benefited from Tokarskis lax play for the winner. "Those were two gifts. We gave them those goals," said Bulldogs coach Sylvain Lefebvre. "Those were glaring mistakes." With Hamilton leading 1-0 in the second period, the Senators tied the game at 15:00 when Pageau beat Tokarski above the glove into a gaping top corner. Pageau was left unmarked just outside the crease following a defensive breakdown, and could make no mistake from such close range. Robinson put Binghamton ahead less than a minute later, slotting home his ninth of the year past a sprawling Bulldogs goaltender. After an initial shot from the point, Tokarksi tried to smother the puck with his glove, but Senators forward Derek Grant got to it before him. Grant poked it out to a wide-open Robinson. "Its tough to come back from that," said Lefebvre. "Those really hurt your confidence. And were in a tough stretch right now, so confidence isnt coming easy to us. Sometimes we get discouraged too easily." The Bulldogs (22-24-5) found no way back after the abrupt turnaround. Instead, they were kept at bay by Binghamton (33-15-4) netminder Andrew Hammond, who was in fine form. Hammond made 31 saves, including 10 in the third period, for his 17th win of the season. Hamilton is slumping of late. Theyve gone 2-7-1 in their last 10 games, and have only scored four times in their last three. "Thats the story of our season so far," said forward Gabriel Dumont, who was kept off the score sheet for the fourth straight game. "Were trying to keep it simple and drive to the net, put pucks on the net, but were having trouble finding the back of the net." Dumont, whos played two games with the Montreal Canadiens this seasonn, has been a Bulldog for the last four years.dddddddddddd His struggling team has fallen to 13th in the Western Conference, and is eight points out of a playoff spot. "Its a frustrating season with some highs, and a lot of lows," he added. "Were still looking for consistency. Tonight, we were only able to score one goal." The goal was Nick Tarnaskys, and it opened the scoring at 4:18 of the second period. The six-foot-two Bulldogs forward used defenceman Mike Sdao as a screen to fool Hammond with a shot between the legs. "I got a lucky bounce at the blue-line," said Tarnasky, who was on a partial breakaway when he entered the Binghamton zone. "I heard somebody yelling: Youre on a two-on-one. But I wasnt. I was going to pass, but there was nobody there. "It was lucky enough that (Sdao) was coming across at the same time as I shot it. I dont think the goaltender was able to see it. That play gave us a little lift at the time." But it was all Binghamton after their two quick strikes later in the frame. Andre Petersson scored on a great individual effort at 12:29 of the third period to seal the victory, and Mike Hoffman added another in an empty net in the games final two minutes. Hoffman has 10 points (five goals, five assists) in his past five games. Hes second in the AHL in points with 65. Tokarski made 18 saves. There was little love lost between the teams to start the game. Tarnasky and Binghamtons Darren Kramer set the tone before the encounter even got underway, exchanging words and a few slashes during the pre-game warm-up. Tarnasky and Kramer waited only seven minutes into the game to solve their differences, dropping the gloves to earn fighting majors. Jarred Tinordi and the Senators Mark Borowiecki also fought in a first period that saw 34 penalty-minutes doled out by the referees. Notes: The attendance at the Bell Centre was 8,771. a The Senators, Ottawas AHL affiliate, are in first place in the East Division. Theyve won four games in a row. a This was the second and last matchup of the season between Hamilton and Binghamton. Tinordi scored in overtime to lead the Bulldogs to victory over the Senators on Feb. 8. 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