Leading up to Monday’s trade deadline, Eric Staal‘s name was thrown around as a possible trade chip, but he ended up getting a new deal from the Minnesota Wild.
According to reports, he has agreed to terms on a two-year extension with an average annual value of $3.25 million.
He would have been a free agent next summer.
Rookie general manager Paul Fenton had a busy trade deadline. He dealt Mikael Granlund to the Predators for Kevin Fiala. A week earlier, he sent Charlie Coyle to Boston for Ryan Donato. He also sent longtime Wild forward Nino Niederreiter to Carolina.
The 34-year-old Staal is sticking around to help the Wild’s playoff push. His current deal carries a cap hit of $3.5 million, so he’s taking a slight pay cut.
A five-time All-Star, Staal was traded to the Rangers at the 2016 deadline after 12 seasons in Carolina.
He signed with the Wild as a free agent after that season and resurrected his career. He had 65 points in 2016-17 and 42 goals and 76 points last season. He has 40 points in 61 games this season.