After impressing in camp (and with cap space now available), Panthers sign Eric Staal
First-year Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice’s relationship with Eric Staal goes back a bit.
It was a bond forged in the 2003-2004 NHL season, Maurice’s final season as the head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes that overlapped with Staal’s rookie NHL season with the organization. Maurice saw glimpses of talent there from a forward who was 18 going on 19, from a player who might not have been physically strong enough or fast enough in the moment to tap into his potential instantly but would see the results unfold in time.
The drive and competitiveness and eagerness to make an impact Maurice saw in Staal then is still there now nearly two decades later.
So is the humbleness.
“There’s absolutely no ego in the man,” Maurice said. “I can’t say that I’m surprised by it because that’s the way he always was. All of these great players when they get a little older, ego still drives them, but for Eric, it’s not ego. It’s about winning. It’s about hockey, the pure love of the game.”
So it was a joyful moment midway through the Panthers’ morning skate on Friday when Maurice huddled the team together at center ice.
Moments later, stick taps and hollering and celebration ensued, all directed toward Staal and for good reason.
Staal, the 37-year old forward and 16-year NHL veteran, is officially under contract with the Panthers, signing a one-year, $750,000 contract after being with the team first on a professional tryout during training camp and then practicing as a non-roster player once the season began. He now shares a roster with his younger brother Marc, a defenseman who signed a one-year deal with Florida in the offseason.
Staal isn’t drawing into the lineup Friday night when the Panthers host the Tampa Bay Lightning, but the fact that he is now under contract, Maurice said, is a testament to Staal’s determination.
Maurice and Staal had a conversation early in the summer about what might unfold. Stall’s longevity and track record speaks for itself.
He has 1,034 career points (441 goals, 593 assists) over 1,293 games. He won a Stanley Cup in 2006 with the Hurricanes. He’s a six-time All-Star and is one of five active members of the Triple Gold Club still playing in the NHL, winning gold medals at the IIHF World Championship (with Canada in 2007) and the Olympics (with Canada in 2010) in addition to his Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes.
“He’s a guy who’s been around for a while and knows everything about everything,” forward Ryan Lomberg said. “He’s definitely a guy I’ll be picking his brain if I have any type of question. He’s the type of guy that, more often than not, he’ll have the right answer”
But there was no guarantee the Panthers would be able to turn his professional tryout into a contract — at least not at first. Florida was already hovering near the salary cap even before the thought of signing him to a minimum contract.
Staal, Maurice said, wasn’t focused on that.
“It wasn’t me telling Eric ‘I don’t know if there’s a spot,’” Maurice said. “It was him saying ‘Listen, I’m going to come in and go as hard as I can. If there’s not a spot, just tell me.’ He’s as honest as he is tall. He is truly an easy man to work with because there’s no agenda. He just wants to win and he wants to play here.”
There wasn’t a spot initially despite Staal impressing in training camp. The Panthers opened the season with a 20-person roster: 12 forwards, six defensemen, two goaltenders.
General manager Bill Zito earlier in the week said the Pantehrs were trying to find a way to get Staal onto the roster.
With defenseman Aaron Ekblad going on long-term injured reserve on Wednesday, the Panthers have $7.5 million in temporary cap relief. This allowed them to formally sign Staal.
“He’s great for what’s still a relatively young core here, having a veteran like that” Maurice said. “But it’s not just the veteran. It’s who he is as a man, how he trains, how he competes, how he practices, how he chirps out there, how he’s just wired. It just makes our organization better.”
This story was originally published October 21, 2022 at 12:05 PM.
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