Hurricanes
Hurricanes acquire Jordan Staal for Sutter, prospect and pick
By Mike Maniscalco
Published: 2012-06-22 20:59:00
Updated: 2012-06-23 12:28:47
Jun 23, 2012
Raleigh, N.C. — After a report surfaced Thursday that Pittsburgh's Jordan Staal turned down a 10-year extension worth $60 million, rumors began swirling around the Hurricanes organization. Many wondered if Carolina General Manager Jim Rutherford would make good on his off-season promise to find a player to skate with Eric Staal by bringing his brother to Raleigh.
On Friday night, the Hurricanes made the sibling connection happen, bringing Jordan Staal to Carolina in the hopes of ending a three-year playoff drought.
The Canes sent Pittsburgh their alternate captain Brandon Sutter, defenceman Brian Domoulin and the eighth overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft to bring the younger Staal to Raleigh.
Rutherford said Friday that giving up Sutter was tough.
"I think a lot of Brandon as a person and I think he is one of the best two-way players in the league, that was a very tough part of this deal to give him up," he said. "But, when you're looking at acquiring an elite player, you usually end up giving something that you don't want to give. We gave three good pieces to Pittsburgh in order to get Jordan."
Dumoulin was an up and coming defensive player in the organization, a player Rutherford thinks has a bright future.
"Dumoulin is a guy we like a lot, this is a guy that is going to play in the league a long time and be at least a four or five defenceman and a real solid guy."
Friday's news was the beginning of a big weekend for Jordan Staal, who is getting married this weekend in Thunder Bay, Canada.
Staal has scored 120 goals, earned 128 assists and posted a plus-53 plus/minus rating in 431 regular-season games and in the playoffs has totaled 23 goals and 13 assists in 73 post-season games. Staal turns 24 on Sept. 10 and will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
Jim Rutherford said that Staal is a player that has a great skill set.
“It's hard to find a Jordan Staal in the National Hockey League, a guy that is 6'4", 220 pounds that can skate like him, I don't know if you could name me two other guys in the league that can do the same things that Jordan does," he said.
Staal's size is something the Canes need up front, and he quickly becomes one of the biggest players on the team. Rutherford also likes the resume that the younger Staal has amassed during his six-year career.
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“For his young age, he has a wealth of NHL experience, including winning the Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh in 2009," Rutherford said. "And he is obviously a natural fit for our team in joining our captain, his older brother Eric."
While some have speculated that the Staal brothers will be united on a top line and that Eric will make a move to left wing, Rutherford said the team has options.
"Kirk (Muller) is going to have to sort that out as to how that is going to go. There are a couple of options there, it makes it more difficult now that we've moved Brandon out, to put the two Staals together, but there is that option because Eric played extremely well on the left wing in the Olympics," he said.
Sutter, who turns 23 in February, is coming off campaign where he scored 17 goals and added 15 assists. The former 11th selection of the Hurricanes will step into the void left by Staal in Pittsburgh, a team that could contend for the Eastern Conference in 2012-2013.
Rutherford said that the organization is not done looking to add talent to the Hurricanes either but that acquiring a player through a trade will be difficult.
"We'll keep looking and see if we can, but I can tell you based on what I've gone through in the last two weeks leading up to the draft," he said. "It's hard to make deals right now because there are not many players out there and there are a lot of teams trying to upgrade their team."
Rutherford said contract talks with the newest Staal will begin in July.
"We'll start to talk in the early part of July there is no reason to leave it. We're all aware of what was reported that he turned down $60 million over 10 years," Rutherford said. "He's already had contract talks with Pittsburgh so we'll get right at it I would suspect in the first week of July."
Copyright 2013 620 The Buzz. All rights reserved.
Most Recent Comments
RE: Hurricanes acquire Jordan Staal for Sutter, prospect and pick
From listening to JR talk about this trade it sounds like the only way to get Jordan was to do this deal now. NYR was in the mix and I think if Jordan went there JR was afraid that he would be just as happy playing with Marc and then NYR would have two of the NHL Staals. With that kind of Staal gravitational pull, Eric may have been pulled there too. All the Staals have made it pretty clear that they want to play together, and now we have the largest Staal contingency with two on the canes and one on the Checkers (well sort of. Jared was loaned out this year).
I hate losing Sutter, Dumo, and pick at #8, but the return is immense. Jordan should make our team better, and even though that is true we still need more pieces. Now we have a vacancy sign on the 3rd C, but that could be filled possibly from within the system. Welsh is a likely candidate for that. I still think we should get a true top line winger, and a big shutdown D as well.
I hope we have another trade and move into free agency to find what we need, but we won't know what we have until camp starts and then hopefully our opening day roster is something we can all be hopeful with. Who knows what will happen next year, but I am becoming more and more optimistic that JR will continue to work hard to get more done for our team. We need to, at the very least, make the playoffs this year. You never know what can happen.
RE: Hurricanes acquire Jordan Staal for Sutter, prospect and pick
we have 3 of the 4 brothers on the roster, only one is still in the AHL atm developing. :)
RE: Hurricanes acquire Jordan Staal for Sutter, prospect and pick
I know it's a pipe dream, but can you imagine if the Canes got Marc Staal? Three Staal brothers on the roster would be awesome.
RE: Hurricanes acquire Jordan Staal for Sutter, prospect and pick
Hate to lose Sutter,Jordan will stir up the offense,good trade.
RE: Hurricanes acquire Jordan Staal for Sutter, prospect and pick
Glad to have another Staal on the Canes' roster, but thought Sutter was on the short list of players that JR didn't want to trade. Sure hope it works out.
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