Jordan Staal

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Position Center
Shoots Left
Height
Weight		 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
NHL Team Pittsburgh Penguins
Nationality Flag of Canada Canada
Born September 10, 1988,
Thunder Bay, ON, CAN
NHL Draft 2nd overall, 2006
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pro Career 2006 – present

Jordan Lee Staal (born on September 10, 1988 in Thunder Bay, Ontario) is a professional ice hockey player for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League.

Contents

[edit] Playing career

Jordan Staal was drafted second overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, becoming the second Staal brother to be drafted this high after older brother Eric. Staal has won the OHL Championship with the Peterborough Petes, played in the 2006 Memorial Cup, where the Peterborough Petes failed to make the playoff round. He was also selected for the 2006 CHL Top Prospects Game.

Staal was signed to a professional contract by the Penguins on October 2, 2006, and began the 2006-07 season with the team in the NHL. On October 12, 2006 Staal scored his first goal in the NHL, a shorthanded goal against New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist.

On October 21, 2006, in a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Staal set NHL records by becoming the youngest player in league history to score two shorthanded goals in one game and the youngest player to score on a penalty shot. As of March 1, 2007, Staal leads the NHL in short handed goals.

Early in his first season, there was speculation that Staal would be returned to his junior team to avoid allowing him to accrue a full season under the NHL's collective bargaining agreement. However, due to his strong play, particularly on the penalty-kill, the Penguins chose to keep him through both the 10th game of the season, which makes 2006-2007 count as a full year under his initial contract, and the 41st game of the season, which makes him eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2013. [[1]]

In January 2007, Staal participated in the NHL Youngstars game during the All-Star festivities along with teammates Ryan Whitney and heralded Russian star Evgeni Malkin.

On February 10, 2007, Staal scored his first NHL career hat trick and thus became the youngest player in NHL history to score a hat trick at 18 years and 153 days, coming against the Toronto Maple Leafs. His first goal came at 19:22 in the first period, the second came at 3:32 in the second, and his third was the game winner, as he beat Toronto goalie Andrew Raycroft stick-side at 3:54 in overtime. He broke a record that had been held for over sixty years by Jack Hamilton. Hamilton was 18 years, 185 days old when he scored four goals for Toronto against the New York Rangers on December 4, 1943.

On March 1, 2007, Staal tied the NHL rookie record by scoring his league-leading sixth shorthanded goal. The record was set by Gerry Minor of Vancouver in 1980-81 and matched by John Madden in 1999-2000. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Staal, is the only player in NHL history to have scored more than one shorthanded goal before his 19th birthday.

On March 6, 2007, in a comeback win for the Penguins on the road against the Ottawa Senators, Jordan Staal scored the first of 3 goals in a row for his team. Down 4-1 with ten minutes left in the 3rd period, Staal's first goal was a shorthanded tally, which set a record for most shorthanded goals by a rookie (7). Two goals followed in three minutes and Pittsburgh won 5-4 in a shootout.

Staal's nickname is Gronk, named after a comic book character. The name was given to him by Colby Armstrong, a Penguins teammate. Teammates call him the gronk because they say that on the ice he is huge, strong, and scary because of his size.

Popular hockey commentator Don Cherry has commented that Staal should win the 2006-2007 Calder Trophy, due to the fact that Evgeni Malkin is a minus player, while Staal has a +19. [2].

[edit] Staal family

Older brothers Eric (Carolina Hurricanes) and Marc (New York Rangers draft pick) both also play professionally, while younger brother Jared was drafted in the first round, 11th overall, in the 2006 OHL Entry Draft by the Sudbury Wolves; Marc also played for Sudbury while his brother Eric played for Peterborough.

[edit] Awards

[edit] Personal Life

  • Jordan is quiet about his personal life but says he is single.
  • He loves playing for the Pens and being with his fans!

[edit] Career statistics

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2004-05 Peterborough Petes OHL 66 9 19 28 29 14 5 5 10 16
2005-06 Peterborough Petes OHL 68 28 40 68 69 3 1 1 2 2
OHL Totals 134 37 59 96 98 17 6 6 12 18
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