Player Discussion Eric Staal (The Frickin' All-Star)

[Dr Jan Itor]

Yeah, I don't see the downside of waiting. Is he going to do something in 2018-19 that he hasn't already done? Probably not.

I'm not opposed to locking something in if it makes sense, but I wouldn't be in a rush either.

 

[Wabit]

I'm not in a rush to re-sign him until the next expansion draft date is set.

He's the player the Wild need as a 1/2C, and I don't see anyone within the organization stepping up to come close to replacing his production any time soon.

 

[57special]

I can't see the Staal of 2019-20/20120-21 matching the 2017-18 Staal. Unless we win a Cup or something crazy this year or the next, the Wild just have to wait on re-signing him, for the long term good of the team.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

What a month!

 

[MehMild]

Staal wanted to be here, hopefully continues to want to be here and takes a short friendly contract. Enjoying the ride.

 

[BigT2002]

Staal wanted to be here, hopefully continues to want to be here and takes a short friendly contract. Enjoying the ride.

He has been quoted in articles that he loves living in Edina and wants his kids to go to school and play hockey here. I'm willing to bet a 6-pack of your favorite adult beverage that he would be willing to stay here. Most of these guys who are more "seasoned" end up sticking around because it is a great place to have a family and still be active with your passion.

 

[57special]

Yeah, I think Staal has some buddies on the team living near him, and they go over to each others house with their kids and play pond, or scoot them down to Braemar or some of the outdoor rinks. If he gets 60+ pts. next year, he will probably be able to get a 3 yr./18-20M deal from someone. If the Wild counter with a 3/15M then I would guess he would stay. It's a real hassle to move when your kids are school age, and i'm guessing he's got lots of $$ stored away for a rainy day.

He doesn't strike me as the sort of guy who craves the bright lights of LA, NY, or Miami...even Toronto, for that matter, which is getting to be a big city and is a very intense experience for Leafs players.

Unless some teacher starts flunking out his kids or cops start giving him tickets, then he'll probably want to play the string out here.

The only other thing I can think of is if the Wild really start to stink and decide to rebuild, but that is pretty damn unlikely.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

We can afford $6m to $7m for him next summer. Might not need him to take much of a discount.

 

[Bazeek]

We can afford $6m to $7m for him next summer. Might not need him to take much of a discount.

Yeah, the AAV shouldn't matter much if we can keep the term down. And even then the goal of keeping the term down isn't necessarily to let him walk 2 years later, it's just to make sure that his pay stays about in line with his performance. If he doesn't mind 1 and 2 year deals I can see the guy retiring here.

 

[MNNumbers]

Concerning his play, someone fill me in.....

As a comparable (well, no one compares to this, but....), Gretzky was great even on old legs because of his hockey IQ and his great ice vision.

Other players, who rely on physical skills, don't age as well.

Which is a better description of the current MN Superstar?

 

[Goose312]

He's mostly an IQ player and deceptively fast. The issue could come up that Pominville was mostly an IQ player too, but if you put yourself into those good scoring positions and can't control the puck your IQ simply doesn't matter.

Players that really age well are usually physical freaks. Guys that put in the effort to stay in shape. I remember before last season Bruce was talking about how good of shape Staal came into camp in, and how he just crushed the skating test. He may not have 4 more 65+ point seasons in him but I wouldn't bet against him still being worth every year of a 3 year extension even if he's a bit overpaid the last year.

 

[57special]

His legs must be decent still, but I would say that his IQ, size, and reach allow him to reach scoring spots and stay there. Closest comparable to him I can think of right now is Phil Esposito? He's not as physical as Getzlaf...also not breaking down like him.

When players decline in their mid 30's it can be very fast. I would not be surprised at all if Staal went from elite to finished in a matter of about two years, though I will say that size doesn't diminish, while speed does.

 

[Wild in KC]

Staal has become my favorite player on this team along with Parise and Zucker. Anyway to keep him in the fold for the remainder of his NHL career would be great. There doesn't appear to be much slowing him down right now.

 

[Wild in KC]

Staal is playing like the leagues MVP right now, but like previously mentioned by others, there's no hurry to get a new deal done with him. Personally, if he were to reup with Minnesota, it will be on a 2 year deal, IMHO. Koivu's deal would likely be an appropriate offer for Staal.

Once again, as great as he is RIGHT NOW, history says regression is coming likely in the next couple seasons.

 

[tomgilbertfan]

 

[MoeTheHobo]

Wait, is smörgåsbord a real saying in NA?

 

[Wild11MN]

Wait, is smörgåsbord a real saying in NA?

Yup, not super common, but I hear it from time to time.

 

[MoeTheHobo]

Yup, not super common, but I hear it from time to time.

Swedish is my first language and I've barely heard it

 

[Bazeek]

His legs must be decent still, but I would say that his IQ, size, and reach allow him to reach scoring spots and stay there. Closest comparable to him I can think of right now is Phil Esposito? He's not as physical Getzlaf...also not breaking down like him.

When players decline in their mid 30's it can be very fast. I would not be surprised at all if Staal went from elite to finished in a matter of about two years, though I will say that size does't diminish, while speed does.

I want to say I remember someone (Brian Lawton?) talking about how Staal acknowledged that he'd let his conditioning slip during his later seasons in Carolina, and a big part of his preparation before coming to the Wild was to get that back on track. Especially his legs and lower body.

I don't know how far that pushes out the inevitable cliff, but if he continues to stay on top of the conditioning he might have quite a long career. This is another place where maintaining a "winning environment" can pay dividends.

 

[Soldier13Fox]

Swedish is my first language and I've barely heard it

Ha, that's funny. It's definitely something I've never heard outside of Minnesota/Wisconsin which makes sense with our heavy Scandanavian ancestry presence. Certainly didn't hear it when I lived in the South!

 

[Bazeek]

Swedish is my first language and I've barely heard it

It might be one of those things that's survived better in the minds of Scandinavian immigrants here in North America than it has in Sweden. Like lutefisk, which I'm still pretty sure is an elaborate joke that we play on ourselves.

 

[MoeTheHobo]

It might be one of those things that's survived better in the minds of Scandinavian immigrants here in North America than it has in Sweden. Like lutefisk, which I'm still pretty sure is an elaborate joke that we play on ourselves.

This is quite fascinating, if I moved abroad I'd hold on to my set of curse words rather than a incredibly smelly fish you eat at christmas

 

[Wabit]

It might be one of those things that's survived better in the minds of Scandinavian immigrants here in North America than it has in Sweden. Like lutefisk, which I'm still pretty sure is an elaborate joke that we play on ourselves.

I don't get the lutefisk thing. My folks' church still does a lutefisk dinner once a year, not many under 60 people show up for it. I helped out there once for it, never again.

I hear/use smörgåsbord from time to time, but it doesn't come up in everyday conversations.

 

[Uberdachen]

His legs must be decent still, but I would say that his IQ, size, and reach allow him to reach scoring spots and stay there.

That reach. He can forecheck from his own end. It's like if Jared Spurgeon was the appropriate size for his stick. It seems like he's standing still at center ice vaudeville-hooking pucks anytime he's not scoring, which I guess isn't all that much.

 

[Bazeek]

I don't get the lutefisk thing. My folks' church still does a lutefisk dinner once a year, not many under 60 people show up for it. I helped out there once for it, never again.

I hear/use smörgåsbord from time to time, but it doesn't come up in everyday conversations.

I have family that genuinely like it, but they're all on the older side. I pretend to like it in order to torture my wife.