ST. PAUL, Minn. – It’s easy to forget just how long Eric Staal has been in the National Hockey League.
One look at the game notes provided by the Minnesota Wild in the media box is a quick reminder.
Since entering the league in 2003, Staal ranks second in shots, third in games played, sixth in goals, seventh in points and 10th in assists amongst active players.
And he’s showing no sign of slowing down.
Now in his 14th season, the 33-year-old has 23 points in 26 games and had 11 points in his previous nine games entering Saturday’s 2-1 overtime win against the visiting St. Louis Blues.
“I’ve been fortunate to have been put in some great spots with some great players here,” said Staal, in his second season with the Wild.
“We’ve got a great nucleus of forwards who can make a difference. It’s been fun to join and be a part of hockey down here and looking forward, hopefully, to a lot more time.”
One of just a couple of handfuls of active players who can boast a 100-point season, a group that includes the likes of Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and the latest, Connor McDavid, Staal welcomes the NHL’s offensive explosion, which in part can be attributed to new rules that limit slashing and have also led to more power plays being assessed.
Despite his advancing age, the veteran forward doesn’t seem to have any issues keeping up.
“I think you have to adjust with the game. The game’s definitely turned even more up-tempo and fast-paced. It’s tight checking, but there are opportunities to find some areas. For me, fortunately it’s been going well and I’ve been enjoying it. So I want to keep that going,” Staal said.
The situation doesn’t seem to matter in 2017-18.
He’s got a couple of power play goals this season and is tied for tops in the NHL with three shorthanded points, his two shorthanded goals tied for third.
Staal, who has 363 goals and 869 points in 1,037 NHL games, isn’t too worried about individual numbers – unless team success comes along with them.
The Wild (13-10-3) may be in sixth place in the highly competitive Central Division, but they’re in the thick of a wild-card race, a point back of Vancouver and just six points behind third-place Nashville, last year’s Stanley Cup finalist.
“We’re keeping our head above water here. We had a lot of injuries at the beginning of the year, and we dropped three or four guys a couple of weeks back,” Staal said.
“And we’re missing some key players for a while. We’re starting to get a little bit healthier now. But you have to fight. It’s a tough division. There are a lot of great teams. We’d like to get on a roll with a bunch in a row to get ourselves into the upper echelon of teams.”
That’s the tricky part. But Staal thinks the Wild have what it takes, especially if they find a way to turn around a 5-7-1 record away from the Xcel Energy Centre.
“I think we can continue on the road what we’ve done at times. It’s just about consistency and getting healthier. If we can get (Jared) Spurgeon back and Zach (Parise) back and help fill out our lineup, it’ll make a difference for us and we’ll become deeper and tougher to play against,” he said.
“That’s the NHL now. You’ve got four lines that can play and you need to have everybody on board because when you don’t, it’s a tough league to win in.”
