Earlier today, the Philadelphia Flyers signed defenseman Marc Staal to a one-year contract worth $1.1 million. Staal, who is 36 years old, is coming off a Stanley Cup Final run with the Florida Panthers where he scored three goals and added 12 assists for 15 points through 82 regular season games. The Panthers lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the Final, and Staal played all 21 playoff games, not registering a single point but being a huge depth piece on their blue line.
Staal is one of four brothers that have had NHL experience, the other three being Jordan, Eric, and Jared. Marc was drafted by the New York Rangers in the first round of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft at 12th overall but didn’t get his first taste of NHL action until the 2007-08 season. He played his junior career with the Sudbury Wolves of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and had the honour of being the captain for his last two seasons with the club.
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Through four seasons with the Wolves, Staal scored 23 goals and added 100 assists for 123 points through 236 games played which comes out to a 0.52 points per game average. His best season was in 2005-06 where he had 11 goals and 38 assists for 49 points through 57 games and had the opportunity to represent his home country of Canada at the U20 World Junior Championship, where he had an assist in six games.
Staal is entering his 18th NHL season, and has scored 52 goals and added 177 assists through 1,101 games which comes out to a 0.21 points per game average. He was the alternate captain of the Rangers for ten seasons before he joined the Detroit Red Wings in the 2020-21 season. He played two seasons with the Red Wings before joining the Panthers last season, and will now be joining his fourth team with the Flyers.
Staal’s Fit With The Flyers
Staal will bring some veteran leadership and stability to the blue line next season for the Flyers. He has been a useful depth piece for contending teams in the past, so there is a chance he becomes a rental player at the trade deadline. Until then, he will be a leader for the Flyers rookies and young guns who have been struggling the past few seasons.
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Staal will likely pencil into the third pairing on the Flyers but could take on an increased role if any player goes down with an injury during the season. He’s not an offensive-minded defenseman by any means, but his overall game has remained consistently strong throughout the entirety of his career.
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