But despite that early goal-scoring success, Staal, who has five pro seasons under his belt, knows what style of play he has to employ to be the most effective on the ice.
“I’m not going to sugarcoat it, I’m not the most skilled player,” said Staal. “I’m sure I’ll be a bottom six forward who’s going to play physical. Hopefully I’ll be able to chip in with more offense going forward, but I know the coaching staff doesn’t expect me to be that player, and neither do I.”
He may not expect to be that player, but for a stretch at the start of this past season, Staal certainly looked like an offensive force.
Staal, whose career high heading into the 2014-15 campaign was four goals, came out firing, matching that total just 18 games into the season and setting a new high mark two nights later. The points just started piling up for the forward, who racked a career-best 11 points in 2014-15, all coming in his first 34 games.
“My second game of the year I scored and that helps right away,” said Staal. “You see one go in and they start to go in more in practice and that turns into games and you just keep building. And then being in the position we were this season, I was getting more opportunities to be in scoring positions. That definitely helps. They were going in.”
When questioned as to where that offensive spark originated from, Staal points to a preseason stint alongside his brothers in Carolina.
As encouraging as Staal’s hot start was, the well eventually dried up for the 24-year-old, as he was held pointless for his final 29 games of the season.
“It cooled off at the end, which is frustrating,” said Staal. “Hopefully I can build on that and bring it for the whole season. I’d like to do that for a full year.”
But as tough as it was to see his numbers fall off like that, Staal is well aware that the biggest impact he can make doesn’t solely have to do with scoring goals.
“If I’m going to be effective I’ll be a hard working winger who gets pucks out of our end and kills penalties and plays physical,” said Staal.
Staal’s commitment to his team was best illustrated by the reveal that the injury that sidelined him for the final five games of the season was one that he had been battling through for a while.
“He had a foot injury that he played through for a good month before we shut him down but he didn’t ask for a day off,” said Jeff Daniels, who coached Staal for five seasons in Charlotte. “He went out every day and gave us the best that he could. It’s good to see character guys that are willing to put their body on the line. That’s the stuff you hope the young guys watch and learn from.”
“It ended up happening in February,” said Staal. “I remember the puck caught me in a weird spot and I didn’t really realize what was going on with it for a little while. It turned out a little worse than a bruise. I was playing with it because it wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t play.”
With the season now over, Staal can turn his focus to fully recovering from the ailment and returning to his offseason routine.
“Hopefully it heals up and I’ll just be in the boot for like three weeks,” said Staal at exit interviews in late April. “Hopefully everything’s ok by then and I can test it out. If I have any lingering issues I’ll take care of it, but I should be ok.”
Staal is set to become a free agent this offseason after spending each of his first five pro campaigns in Charlotte. Should he be brought back by the Checkers, he will be ready and willing to make an impact.
“It took me a little while to realize how I can be effective and if I want to make the NHL what I need to do,” said Staal. “That’s a role that I’ve embraced.”
