Hurricanes’ Captain Jordan Staal Leading by Example With Superb Stanley Cup Final

The Carolina Hurricanes efforts to capture Lord Stanley’s iconic silver chalice are being spearheaded by a member of the Staal family. However, unlike 2005-06, when Eric Staal was leading the line for the Hurricanes, it’s the Hurricanes’ second captain of the Staal name leading the charge in 2025-26. Jordan Staal has begun to lead with his offensive production, a rare sign for the Hurricanes’ captain. However, he’s doing it with great success and making history in a Stanley Cup Final littered with shattered records.

Staal recorded a goal in each of the first four Stanley Cup Final games. In the expansion era, since 1967-68, when the league moved beyond the “Original Six” era, only three other players have done that. Johnny Bucyk, Steve Payne, and Mike Bossy. The most recent player to do it was Bossy with the New York Islanders in 1982. Staal has become the first player to score in each of the first four Stanley Cup Final games in 44 years. He is also now the oldest player in NHL history to achieve this feat.

Staal’s Offensive Outburst

Despite being deployed primarily to shut down opponents as one of the league’s best shutdown forwards, Staal traditionally makes his impact by playing in the role of his coach. The former Selke finalist is one of the most important parts of Rod Brind’Amour’s system. His job is to stop opponents from scoring, rather than start the scoring himself. Carolina’s style of play depends heavily on breaking down their opponents, and the heavy forecheck Staal initiates is a massive reason for Carolina’s team success. It’s hard to settle when there’s a 6-foot-4 ox in the lineup of the other team waiting to smash into you. That’s normal for Staal, but the scoring is new.

Staal has been in Carolina for 13 seasons now, but this was by far the best goal-scoring season of his career. He hit the 20-goal plateau for just the second time in his Hurricanes tenure. However, in 2015-16, he played 82 games to hit 20 goals. This season, he missed time due to a bout of meningitis. Since returning from that illness (and returning to the top power-play unit, which definitely helps your goal scoring), Staal has just continued to accumulate goals. He’s always been capable of scoring, but he’s never scored at quite this rate in a Hurricanes uniform.

Sixteen of Staal’s 20 goals came at even strength. That is tied for the most he’s ever had with the Hurricanes. What was so incredible about this particular season is that Staal’s shooting percentage went from a career 11.7% to 18.2%, meaning he was scoring with essentially every fifth shot. On a team that shoots the puck as much as the Hurricanes do, that can decide games or series, and that is what we’re seeing from Staal in this series with the Vegas Golden Knights.

Staal’s Analytical Success

It feels weird to say that a third-line center is underrated, but somehow, that applies to Jordan Staal. That Staal line always starts when the puck is in the defensive zone. They’re comfortable defending, and no one on the team starts in the defensive zone more frequently than they do. Now, because Carolina is such a dominant territorial team, they still start more in the neutral and offensive zone than in the defensive zone, but they are the trio Carolina turns to defensively, too. When you then factor in the offense, Carolina has a new favorite line to lean on.

According to Natural Stat Trick, Staal has a 2.45 expected goals for per 60 (xGF/60) at 5-on-5. He’s only got an expected goals against per 60 (xGA/60) of 2.42. That makes for an expected goals percentage (xG%) of 50.36%, one of just five Hurricanes to be above 50% in the Stanley Cup Final. To be a net positive while continuing to be the thorn in the opponent’s side defensively isn’t just impressive; it’s earning him consideration for the Conn Smythe Trophy as Playoff MVP if the Hurricanes go on to win the Stanley Cup.

Can Jordan lead the Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup? Well, it wouldn’t be the first time a Staal has sparkled in the Stanley Cup Final for a Brind’Amour-led team to capture Lord Stanley. While Eric burst onto the scene in 2005-06, Jordan is in the twilight of his career. The saying, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme,” comes to mind with this. The names are the same, but the roles are different. If the Hurricanes want to repeat the trick, they need Jordan to continue to dominate like he has been doing this postseason.