NHL Trade Rumors: Teams That Must Go Hard After Eric Staal
It only makes sense that Carolina's Eric Staal would be a hot commodity. He's a strong player on one of the worst teams in the league, so it only makes sense that he would be highly sought after.
But the question remains. Where will he go? Who should pursue him?
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This is a match made in Heaven. Staal is from Ontario and would fill a void that the Maple Leafs have at center. According to Mike Zeisberger of the Toronto Sun, there have been grumblings that this trade was in the works.
Tyler Bozak currently leads the Maple Leafs' center men in points with 24. While Staal is in the middle of a down year, he'd certainly be the team's top center for the remainder of the season.
Toronto is a more talented team than Carolina. He'd have better players to distribute the puck to, and would not be the primary focus of the defense.
As of now, the Maple Leafs are the only team rumored to be in pursuit of Staal. That doesn't mean they're the only team that needs to be pursuing him.
With the exception of Stephen Weiss, the Panthers have gotten next to no scoring from their centers. They lead the Southeast Division by a comfortable six points and are currently the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.
But if Florida is going to win in the playoffs, they will need some scoring that doesn't come from the front line or the point. That's where Staal would make an instant impact.
Given the fact that this team was dead last in the Eastern Conference a season ago, it may be a bit of a surprise that they are in the playoff mix. But that's no excuse to not improve an obvious weakness.
The Panthers have a lot of depth at the point. With more scoring from the forwards, this team is a nightmare for playoff opponents. Staal would bring that.
There is no excuse for this team to be on the outside of the playoffs looking in. On talent alone, Washington is easily one of the top teams in the conference.
More than anything Staal would bring on the stats sheet, he brings leadership. Remember, this is a guy that's won a Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes.
On the stats sheet, Staal would be a big addition. He would certainly fit in on one of the team's top two lines, giving them some depth. More than attitude, that's plagued them in the playoffs in past seasons.
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