ERIC STAAL - Center - 34 - $3.25MM Cap Hit - UFA in 2021-2022
LAST UPDATED 8/20/19
After his disastrous tenure as a rental for the New York Rangers, Eric Staal looked like he had run out of gas. He had scored below 40 points for the first time since his rookie season, and he had to take a pretty sizable pay cut to sign with the Wild. But then everything went right for Staal, and he had a career renaissance, posting campaigns of 65 and 76 points. Those years were not without some red flags, though, and the sharp increase in his shooting percentage from his career average meant that his puck luck was not likely to continue forever. And his past season saw his point production fall to 52, as his shooting percentage fell from 17.4% to 10.2%. Staal is still a strong playmaker with great puck control abilities and a strong shot. He can still produce 50+ points as long as his skating doesn't regress to sharply, and he's also a decent two-way center who can kill penalties sporadically. He's a clear-cut second line center unless he regresses further, and while that's not quite what Wild fans are hoping to hear after his first two seasons in Minnesota, he's still a bargain at $3.25MM considering borderline 2C's are going for $7.14MM on the open market now. He's a good second line center, but I worry what the effects of age might have on his skating, and by extension, his ability to produce, and I wonder if in a few years he might settle into a Jason Spezza power play specialist-type role when he loses his foot speed.
After his disastrous tenure as a rental for the New York Rangers, Eric Staal looked like he had run out of gas. He had scored below 40 points for the first time since his rookie season, and he had to take a pretty sizable pay cut to sign with the Wild. But then everything went right for Staal, and he had a career renaissance, posting campaigns of 65 and 76 points. Those years were not without some red flags, though, and the sharp increase in his shooting percentage from his career average meant that his puck luck was not likely to continue forever. And his past season saw his point production fall to 52, as his shooting percentage fell from 17.4% to 10.2%. Staal is still a strong playmaker with great puck control abilities and a strong shot. He can still produce 50+ points as long as his skating doesn't regress to sharply, and he's also a decent two-way center who can kill penalties sporadically. He's a clear-cut second line center unless he regresses further, and while that's not quite what Wild fans are hoping to hear after his first two seasons in Minnesota, he's still a bargain at $3.25MM considering borderline 2C's are going for $7.14MM on the open market now. He's a good second line center, but I worry what the effects of age might have on his skating, and by extension, his ability to produce, and I wonder if in a few years he might settle into a Jason Spezza power play specialist-type role when he loses his foot speed.
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