The Pittsburgh Penguins’ organizational history has a plethora of great players, and we’ve decided to go through the best Penguins’ players to wear each jersey number. Today, we continue the list by naming the best #11 in Penguins’ history.
There have been a lot of great #11s in Penguins’ history, from George Ferguson to John Cullen to Darius Kasparaitis.
But one #11 played a crucial role in the Penguins’ 2009 Stanley Cup run and was one of Pittsburgh’s best two-way forwards in franchise history: Jordan Staal.
© Charles LeClaire – USA TODAY Sports
Staal was drafted second overall in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, and he was not really expected to make the NHL roster that season. But with Evgeni Malkin unable to start playing in the NHL on day one due to visa issues, Staal was given his nine-game trial run.
He impressed so much in those nine games – scoring his first three NHL goals shorthanded and registering a record-tying seven shorthanded goals on the season as a rookie – that the Penguins had no choice but to keep him around.
And it’s a decision they wouldn’t soon regret.
Staal’s prowess as an elite two-way forward, coupled with his size and long reach, garnered attention around the league from the start, and he became the regular third line center for Pittsburgh as well as their top penalty-killer.
The Penguins made the playoffs for the first time in the Crosby era during Staal’s rookie season, a season in which he scored 29 goals and 42 points in 81 games. He played a good portion of his rookie season alongside Malkin, and had he stayed in that role instead of eventually being designated as the third-line center, he likely would have produced a whole lot more points during his Penguins’ tenure.
But even if his production wasn’t elite to the level of the two future Hall-of-Fame centermen in front of him, he often came through as a clutch player. Perhaps no goal in the Crosby era was more clutch than his – you guessed it – shorthanded goal in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2009 against Detroit.
It ended up being one of the most important goals in franchise history, as it tied the game, led to a Penguin win that knotted up the series, and gave them the momentum they needed to go on to win the Cup:
Another signature Penguins moment from Staal came in November 2008 against Detroit, their first meeting with the Red Wings since being defeated in the Cup Final the previous year. With his team trailing in the third period, Staal completely took over the game, scoring a third-period hat trick and pickpocketing Red Wing great Pavel Datsyuk in overtime to feed the OT winner and help the Penguins exact some revenge on Detroit:
Staal was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes during the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, and he has played in Carolina since then. He has registered 285 goals and 675 points in 1,253 career games up to this point, and he is a two-time Selke Trophy finalist. He also has 36 goals and 70 points in 147 career playoff games, including six game-winning goals and three playoff overtime goals.
In his six seasons with the Penguins, Staal scored 120 goals and 248 points in 431 games.
Honorable Mentions: George Ferguson, John Cullen, Darius Kasparaitis
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