"It's nice. I still feel like I've got a lot of hockey left to play in my career. But it's a nice even number," Staal said. "It's been a lot of fun, a credit to the ton of guys I've played with over my career so far. Hoping for a lot more the rest of my time playing."
As the Wild goes for a sweep of its three-game road trip in New York on Friday when it plays the Rangers at Madison Square Garden, Staal returns to the place where he played before signing with Minnesota two summers ago.
Staal was moved at the trade deadline two years ago from his long-time home in Carolina to New York, where he was expected to help the Rangers during the stretch run.
But a number of factors contributed to Staal scoring just three goals and six points in 20 games -- this after scoring 10 goals and 33 points in 63 games prior with the Hurricanes.
That led to whispers of whether his play had slipped.
Staal has answered those questions in two seasons with Minnesota. He scored 28 goals and 65 points last season, and is on pace to pass those numbers this season if he stays healthy.
His next goal -- empty-net or not -- will tie his season total from a last season, and he appears poised to reach the 30-goal plateau for the first time since he scored 33 in 2010-11 as a 26-year-old.
"For him, it was a good time to get a change," said Wild forward Matt Cullen, one of Staal's closest friends. "I think he's been a little revitalized in a hockey market where he gets to see his kids on the backyard pond, a little bit of the hockey life. It's been good for him, but he's played well. He's played very consistently. He's driven our scoring all year."
More than the numbers, Staal's consistency and his quiet leadership have been invaluable, even for a dressing room full of veterans.
"It's been great and he does it, it seems like, every second night with different wingers. And he never complains, he just goes out there and plays," said Wild coach Bruce Boudreau. "He's a real professional, that's the one thing I've gotten from knowing him these last two years."
Here are the projected lineups:
WILD
Jason Zucker - Eric Staal - Mikael Granlund
Zach Parise - Mikko Koivu - Charlie Coyle
Tyler Ennis - Joel Eriksson Ek - Nino Niederreiter
Marcus Foligno - Matt Cullen - Daniel Winnik
Ryan Suter - Matt Dumba
Nick Seeler - Jared Spurgeon
Mike Reilly - Nate Prosser
Devan Dubnyk
Alex Stalock
RANGERS
Jimmy Vesey - Mika Zibanejad - Pavel Buchnevich
J.T. Miller - Kevin Hayes - Mats Zuccarello
Paul Carey - David Desharnais - Jesper Fast
Cody McLeod - Peter Holland - Vinni Lettieri
Brady Skjei - Neal Pionk
Marc Staal - Anthony DeAngelo
Rob O'Gara - John Gilmour
Henrik Lundqvist
Alexandar Georgiev
Related:
- Wild Warmup: Minnesota at New York Rangers
- Postgame Thursday: Wild shows its depth in win at New Jersey
- Postgame Hat Trick: Wild 4, Devils 2
