Flyers 2023-24 Player Grades: Marc Staal

Staal has a knack for poor judgment, but his on-ice numbers were ironically some of the best on the Flyers. At even strength, he had a 53.8 expected goals percentage (xGF%) which was third among defensemen. There were times when he didn’t make the best decisions with the puck or was out of position, but he made good defensive plays, too.

Staal’s on-ice numbers are probably a little bit misleading, though. Among Flyer defensemen, he was definitely in the lower tier for hockey IQ. He played an easy role, and with an easy role comes good numbers. He didn’t do much offensively, finishing with five points, but he was a decent player in his own zone at even strength.

It’s worth noting that, on the penalty kill, everything changed as Staal was possibly the worst Flyer there. In hindsight, he probably shouldn’t have seen a second of ice time there, much less 33 minutes. Despite not playing all that much on the shorthanded unit, it drove his overall xGF% down to 48.6 percent. This mark was eighth out of 14 defenders on the team.

Staal didn’t have a lot of upside, being one of the slower NHL players and not really getting all that involved offensively when the Flyers had pressure. Tortorella’s system helped mask some of his weaknesses now that he is getting up there in age. As a defensive defenseman, he wasn’t a complete liability in that area but wasn’t particularly fantastic, either.

Should the Flyers Get Another Player like Staal?

Entering the 2024 offseason, the Flyers will want to preach their defense. It was what made them a competitive team throughout the 2023-24 season. Having around eight NHL-worthy defensemen on a roster makes it so some variety can be had.

While the Flyers shouldn’t go after Staal himself, which they won’t, a player like him might not actually be a bad idea. Depth on defense is a valuable thing in the NHL, and the Flyers saw that after they had injuries pile up early in March. They were lucky that American Hockey League (AHL) defenders like Adam Ginning and Ronnie Attard filled in so well. In the event that they struggled, however, there would have been nothing Philadelphia could have done. Avoiding that would be ideal.

It would be smart for the Flyers to go after a player younger and cheaper than Staal, who had a $1.1 million cap hit. After the first rush of free agency, some players tend to go less than their market value. If the Flyers can land a few steals for their defense, that can be an area of their team that can improve.

Staal’s Final Grade

Overall, Staal doesn’t deserve to be graded too harshly. A D-grade seems to be justified, given the fact that he had his ups and downs. He just didn’t provide much one way or the other, making a potential failing grade out of line.