NHL Trade Rumors: Hurricanes Must Not Overpay for Penguins Star Jordan Staal

The Carolina Hurricanes must not overpay to acquire Pittsburgh Penguins star center Jordan Staal, because he's not worth giving up multiple players with star potential, in addition to a quality draft pick.

Per Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (via Ken Laird):

"

@RobRossi_Trib on KD: per lg source Carolina offer to #Pens for Staal is Justin Faulk, Brandon Sutter, 8th overall pick + taking Paul Martin

— Ken Laird (@Ken_Laird) June 18, 2012"

The offer reported above would be a clear win for the Penguins if it ever happened. They would be getting a nice collection of talented young players and a high draft pick, while also getting rid of an overpaid defenseman in Paul Martin.

The Hurricanes are overpaying for Staal if this is their offer to Pittsburgh. Staal is a very good player and would be a first-line center on many teams. His two-way game is fantastic, and he's only going to keep getting better since he's just 23 years old.

However, when you give up two very good young players and a high first-round pick, the return has to be better than just someone of Staal's caliber. He's never scored more than 25 goals or accumulated more than 50 points in a single season. He has also missed 60 games over the past two seasons with injuries.

The idea of him playing with his brother and Hurricanes captain Eric Staal in Carolina sounds great, but it cannot happen if this is the price that must be paid.

Faulk is a future star, and since the Hurricanes don't have any elite defensemen on their NHL roster, trading a potential No. 1 blueliner in Faulk would be a move that Carolina would certainly regret.

Sutter is a promising center prospect and has the potential to be a top-six forward in the NHL for a long time.

Martin is an overrated defenseman, and with a $5 million salary cap hit for three more years, he has a contract not worth his current value.

The Hurricanes cannot foolishly overpay for stars if they want to build a longtime playoff contender. If the team is willing to give up young talent and a valuable draft pick to acquire a star player, it needs to be for someone better than Staal. Rick Nash would be a better option for Carolina.

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Nicholas Goss is a Boston Bruins Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and was also the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Final in Boston