There is no whining from Spezza or the Sens brass on this, so I'm assuming everyone on the Senators are ok with it. On the surface, it might seem like a slight but who cares. The league picks these guys in conference with team GMs, I would suppose they spoke with Muckler and Spezza and it was no biggie. He probably has a bonus clause for making the real All-Star game, not this PR kindergarten extravaganza. Spezza has really grown up in the last few years, I think he's above this kiddie show now. I saw him talk on TV recently and he's lost that nervous giggle after each sentence, he spoke with a lot of maturity and common sense. It means little within the big picture, I heard on the radio that Spezza wouldn't mind the chance to relax, visit his family and bond with the younger brother. As mentioned previously, it might sound like a slap in the face on the surface, but it is mostly fodder for making fans whine on the talk shows. And message boards. OK I know I'm doing it too, I'll close off now
