Marc Staal

At 37 years old, Marc Staal has this physical status:

Marc Staal (born January 13, 1987) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and an alternate captain for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL).

He is Eric Staal of the Minnesota Wild, as well as Jordan Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes and Jared Staal.

Marc is the only defensive man among the four brothers, as well as the only one who has never played for the Hurricanes.

Personal life

On August 12, 2011, Staal married Lindsay Ruggles, a long-time girlfriend who has known each other since high school. On December 25, 2010, he proposed to her. Two daughters and a son are the couple's three children.

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Playing career

Staal grew up playing minor hockey in Thunder Bay, Ontario, and was a minor hockey teammate of future NHLers Tom Pyatt, Ryan Parent, and Taylor Chorney of the Thunder Bay Kings AAA team.

In the 2003 Ontario Hockey League, Staal was ranked second overall (OHL) Priority Selection by the Sudbury Wolves after a good season with the Minor Midget Kings.

Staal played junior hockey for the Sudbury Wolves in the OHL, where he was the team's captain and coached the Wolves to their first trip to the OHL finals in 30 years. In the first round of the NHL Entry Draft in 2005, he was drafted by the New York Rangers, his 12th pick overall. Although most NHL scouts expected Staal to be a top-ten pick, he failed in the draft and the Rangers, seeing Staal available even after the 11th pick was made, the Rangers made a draft day trade to move up; the Rangers traded the Thrashers' 12th overall pick, which they obtained from the San Jose Sharks for both their 16th and 41st picks.

In the 2006 and 2007 IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, Staal competed for Team Canada, winning gold medals both times. In the 2006 Championships, he was named the tournament's best defenseman.

During the 2006-07 season, Marc and his younger brother Jared played together in Sudbury.

Staal was named the recipient of the OHL's Most Outstanding Defenceman for the 2006–07 season on May 7, 2007. Former NHL players Chris Pronger, Al MacInnis, and Denis Potvin have all been named recipients of this coveted award. Despite losing the OHL Championship Series to the Plymouth Whalers in six games, Staal was named the recipient of the Wayne Gretzky 99 Award, the league's post-season Most Valuable Player (MVP).

Staal made his National Hockey League debut for the New York Rangers on October 4, 2007, as well as Head Coach Tom Renney, who would use him mainly in a defensive role in the first season. On November 1, 2007, Staal would face the Washington Capitals for his first NHL point, earning Staal an assist. On November 14, 2007, Staal scored his first NHL goal against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center. Martin Brodeur's outstretched glove and prompted him to put a stooping goaltender's wrist over the crossbar, causing him to miss it by a few points. Scott Gomez and Brendan Shanahan, who were helping with his first game in the NHL, were assisting on his first goal. Staal was one of 16 rookies selected to play in the 2008 NHL All-Star Game in Atlanta, where he scored a goal and assisted. Staal's rookie season ended with ten points on the strength of two goals and eight assists, as the Rangers qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs, with a positive plus/minus rating at +2. With his first NHL playoff goal and two assists, the Rangers defeated the Devils in five games during the Eastern Conference Quarter-finals, he saved his best for the playoffs. The goal was vital in Game 4 of pivotal Game 4: Staal's slapper broke a 3–3 deadlock late in the third period and remained the game-winning goal in a 5–3 victory, giving the Rangers a 3–1 lead in the series. It was also against Martin Brodeur that it was his first regular season goal. However, despite beating the Devils in the Conference Quarterfinals, the Rangers will fall to his younger brother Jordan's team, the eventual Stanley Cup champions, in the Eastern Conference Semi-finals.

Staal's offensive output rose to 15 points in 2008-09, scoring three goals and adding 12 assists, all career highs at the time. At the 2009 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal, he was a sophomore and scored two goals. A coaching change late in the season brought a more offensive approach that helped the Rangers advance to the playoffs. Tom Renney, who was primarily defensive, was replaced by John Tortorella, who increased offense from all of his players, including Staal. As a result, a large portion of Staal's production came closer to the end of the season; 6 of his 15 points came after the coaching change, as opposed to nine under Renney. The Rangers will return to the Stanley Cup playoffs on the strength of their solid finish, but the Washington Capitals defeated the Rangers in the first round in seven games after blowing a 3–1 series lead. Staal would reach his second straight NHL playoff goal during the series.

Marc and his brothers Eric and Jordan were invited to compete for a Team Canada roster spot in Vancouver's 2010 Winter Olympics. Eric was the only Staal named to the squad when the team was announced on December 30, 2009.

Staal's third season in the NHL moved him into a two-way role for the Rangers during 2009–10 as the growth of his offense continued under John Tortorella. Staal enjoyed his first four-game point streak of his career (one goal and three assists). Despite the fact that the Rangers will miss the playoffs for the first time in Staal's history, they will set new career records with eight goals, 19 assists, 27 points, and a career-best +11 rating during the season. He saved his best for late in the year by scoring a stunning, coast-to-coast goal against Florida Panthers goaltender Scott Clemmensen on April 3, 2010, after receiving the puck from teammate Henrik Lundqvist in the defensive zone. It brought a three-game goal-scoring streak to a stop for Staal and sparked a Rangers revival in a 4–1 victory that preserved the Rangers' playoff hopes. On the last day of the season, the team did not qualify for the playoffs, but the Philadelphia Flyers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 2–1 in a shootout, taking their eighth and final playoff spot from the Rangers. During the final game, on-ice for 29:16 of the game's 65 minutes and finished at +1.

Marc became a restricted free agent for the first time in 2010. Despite the fact that talks between Staal's camp and Rangers General Manager Glen Sather were often sluggish, the team's five-year, $19.875 million contract extension was signed on September 15, 2010. After a productive preparation camp, John Tortorella acknowledged Staal's leadership potentials in October 2010 by naming him as an alternate captain at the age of 23.

Staal was selected for the first time in the 2011 NHL All-Star Game in Raleigh, North Carolina, during the 2010–2011 season. He had the opportunity to play on the same team with his brother Eric during the game. With two goals, Staal tied Kimmo Timonen of the Philadelphia Flyers for the most shorthanded defensemen.

Staal's brother, Eric, was checked by his brother, Staal, on February 22, 2011, during a game against the Carolina Hurricanes. As Eric arrived and launched a hard shoulder check, Marc was looking down, fighting for the puck with another Hurricanes player, and Marc was sluggish to get up. It was a legal check, and Marc continued to play for the remainder of the season, leading with 22 assists and 29 points. However, it was revealed before the Rangers' 2011 training camp began that Staal was suffering from post-concussion symptoms. In the 2012 NHL Winter Classic against the Philadelphia Flyers, he did not participate until January 2, 2012. He only played 46 games in 2011–12, unable to recover from his injuries after a career-worst 7 and only five assists) career's lowest score in a career-worst 3. He got better as the season progressed, but he also helped the Rangers advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Staal scored a spectacular overtime goal to give the Rangers a 3–2 victory in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Washington Capitals. Staal's powerplay slapshot from the point past Braden Holtby gave the Rangers a 3-2 victory and a 3-2 series lead after teammate Brad Richards scored a rebound goal with 6.6 seconds remaining in regulation to send the game to overtime.

Staal's strong play into the lockout-shortened 2012–13 season, averaging over 0.5 points per game for the first time in his career, with 11 goals and 9 assists in his first 21 games. However, Staal sustained a horrific eye injury during a 2013 match against the Philadelphia Flyers in New York. Kimmo Timonen's slap-shot was diverted by Flyer forward Jakub Vorák into Staal's right eye, bringing him to the ice. Staal had a small retinal tear in his right eye and an orbital fracture during the game, and was determined that the cause of the injury had been delayed. Since he only played in one game the rest of the year, he effectively ended his season, before pulling him out of the lineup once more. For the first time in his career, he wore a visor because of the injury.

Staal's first full season in 2013-14 was the Rangers' first Stanley Cup Final in 20 years, with 72 regular season games and another 25 in the playoffs. His point totals were modest (three goals and 11 assists for 14 points in the regular season, as well as one goal and four assists in the playoffs), but he concentrated on staying healthy and re-establishing his solid defensive presence. He was the third brother to reach the Finals after his older brother Eric won in 2006 with the Hurricanes and younger brother Jordan was a part of two consecutive finals with the Penguins in 2008 and 2009, winning the latter.

In January 2015, Staal signed a 6-year, $34.2 million contract extension, bringing a cap hit of $5.7 million per year. Staal played 80 games in the regular season, the most he had played in since the 2009-10 season. Both he and his wife had 20 points on the 2010–11 season, with five goals and 15 assists for 20 points. With his help, the team finished the season with 53 victories and 113 points, both single-season franchise records, and earned the team's seventh division championship (second in four years) and the third President's Trophy. For the third time in four years, Staal played 19 games in the offseason, losing in 7 games to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Staal's eighth career game with the Rangers on October 5, 2019, defeating Vic Hadfield for the seventh time played games in franchise history. Staal was a healthy scratch against the Tampa Bay Lightning on October 29, 2019, for the first time in his 13-year NHL career.

Staal, one of the longest-serving Rangers' history, resigned from the team on September 26, 2020, along with a 2021 second-round pick in exchange for future considerations.

Staal and the Red Wings agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract extension on July 25, 2021.

Staal signed a one-year, $750,000 contract with the Florida Panthers on July 13, 2022, having left the Red Wings as a free agent.

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