Steve Yzerman and the Detroit Red Wings have re-signed veteran blue liner Marc Staal to one-year deal worth $2 million. The Red Wings deal includes a full no-move clause. Staal spent last season with the Red Wings after being traded by the New York Rangers. Bob McKenzie was first with the news.
Working free agent day on Wednesday. Let’s see if I remember how to do this: Marc Staal returning to DET on a one-year deal. @TSNHockey
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) July 25, 2021
Detroit Re-Signs Marc Staal
Through his time in Detroit this season Staal has been very underwhelming. Through 56 games last season the former 12th overall pick had three goals and four assists for seven points. He’s never been an elite point producer, but even that’s low for him. He was brought in to Detroit to help mentor the team’s young defencemen like Filip Hronek. Despite the lack of full defensive reliability, Staal still can fit well into a bottom pair and provide needed depth on the blue line.
Drafted in 2005, Staal had spent 13 of his 14 seasons playing for the New York Rangers. Through 892 career games with them, he established himself as a mainstay on the blue line, and a decent shutdown defenceman. As his career progressed along, he started to slowly slip in terms of reliability on the back end. Regardless of this regression, he is still a valued player in today’s game and can still provide experience on the blue line.
What This Means for the Future
As stated before, Staal is still a valued depth piece in the league today. His age might set him apart from his former top-pairing self. He has over 900 games of NHL experience, as well as 107 playoff appearances. Staal brings the experience down the stretch of the season. At $2 million, he is taking quite the discount from the $5.7 million cap hit he had last season. If the Red Wings are out of the playoff race, Staal could be moved at the trade deadline, but with his no-move clause, will control where he goes.
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