Old North Banter
Fansided

Carolina Hurricanes: Eric Staal Traded to Rangers

By John Woodcock

Nov 30, 2015; New York, NY, USA; Carolina Hurricanes center Eric Staal (12) moves the puck around New York Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi (5) during the third period at Madison Square Garden. New York Rangers won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 30, 2015; New York, NY, USA; Carolina Hurricanes center Eric Staal (12) moves the puck around New York Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi (5) during the third period at Madison Square Garden. New York Rangers won 4-3. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Carolina Hurricanes traded Eric Staal to the Rangers in a deal aimed at the future.

The Carolina Hurricanes turned a big page on their franchise history today. They traded away one of the last building blocks to their Stanley Cup winning team from back in 2006. The Hurricanes trade captain and center Eric Staal to the New York Rangers in return for a couple of draft picks and Finnish prospect Aleksi Saarela.

Despite a winning record of 28-25, the Hurricanes are currently sitting well behind in the points chase for the playoffs and made the move to improve their positioning for the future. The Rangers, on the other hand, are the third seed in the East and looking for the player that would put them over the top. Given that Staal is due to become a free agent at the end of season, they are betting that the center can do it for them.

This feels a lot like the Mark Recchi deal that the Hurricanes made back in 2006. If that is the case then there some chance that Staal might come back to the only franchise he has ever known in the off season. Recchi was traded to the Hurricanes from the Penguins that year to finish out the season, but then he returned to Pittsburgh once the free agency period opened.

More from Old North Banter

For the Hurricanes, giving up Staal is giving up the face of the franchise since the move from Hartford. Hopefully he’ll boomerang his way back, but he’s getting to a point in his career that if he wants to hunt more Stanley Cup titles he may decide the pastures are greener elsewhere.

If that happens, then he will be truly missed. He leads the franchise in every meaningful stat since the team has been located in Raleigh. He also is part of the only North Carolina professional team to claim its league championship.

Again, this may not be the end of the road for Staal with the Hurricanes, but for a month or two we won’t being hearing his name on the ice unless the Rangers come to town.

Home/Carolina Hurricanes