Minnesota Wild: Staal is Delivering on Promises

The signing of Eric Staal in the offseason might have seen like a bit of a gamble for the Minnesota Wild. But through the preseason and the first two regular season games his performance has done the talking as he’s proven to all of his critics who though he had nothing left, that they were mistaken.

When Eric Staal signed with the Minnesota Wild this summer lots of people had no idea what to expect. The price actually seemed reasonable at a mere $3.5 million a season for the next three years, but people started to wonder if that was too much. Still this was a player who had a tremendous 13-year NHL career, but was coming off his second worst season since his rookie year.

Was he on the backside of his career, and was the 39 points he put up going to be the first signal of a decline that could see further sliding numbers? It just didn’t seem like a question that no one was able to answer with any certainty.

Sure Bruce Boudreau had lots of praise for the player he was in Carolina. Some voices even suggested that his lack of challenge and winning team around him that saw him start to slow down while he was with the Hurricanes. Staal himself even said all the right words in the offseason, saying his introductory press conference “yeah, it’s definitely motivation to try to bring myself back up to the player I hope and know I can be. I’m looking forward to that opportunity and chance to be a difference-maker with this group.”

The excitement was there for Staal’s arrival, but till the State of Hockey saw him in game action there was just going be a sense of skepticism. Everyone knew the math worked for Staal to make a difference with the Wild, but it just seemed like a theory till we could see if still was indeed the elite player he’s been for most of his career.

Sep 27, 2016; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Eric Staal (12) during a preseason hockey game against the Colorado Avalanche at Xcel Energy Center. The Avalanche defeated the Wild 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

When training camp hit there was reports that he was skating well and fitting in smashingly. That was encouraging, but it wasn’t game action. Then in his preseason debut on October 3rd, Staal played an excellent game against his former mates in St. Paul. Staal hung a goal and an assist on Carolina to help power the Wild to a very decisive 3-1 win.

Then in his other preseason appearance against the Jets five days later he notched an assist and looked to be just as dominate in his play as he was against the Hurricanes. Still it seemed as if people were a bit more excited for Staal’s prospects of a great season, but they just seemed to thing “It was preseason, that’s no guarantee he’ll do that in the regular season.”

The season opened in St. Louis and Staal ended up playing a solid game. He didn’t post any points, but he did finish the game even in plus minus, recorded two hits, and was 60% in the faceoff circle. He even had a breakaway chance where he was pulled down on what should have been a penalty shot and managed to still get a shot on net. Not bad considering the rest of the team around him put up much less of an effort.

The season opener in St. Paul things got even better as Staal put his first puck in the net with and again played a physical game recording three hits. He was easily one of the best Wild players in the game, and if it hadn’t have been for the strong performance of Chris Stewart he would have been the best Wild player in the game.