Staal finished with a minus-2 rating while failing to mark the scoresheet in 13:15 of ice time during Wednesday's 5-2 loss to Chicago.

EDGE Analysis

A move to the bottom defensive pairing alongside Brady Skjei predictably didn't help Staal snap a point skid that dates back to Dec. 8 but it did substantially cut into Staal's ice time after he had topped 18 minutes in eight of his previous nine games. One of the dents in Staal's rating came on an unfortunate play that saw him get crosschecked into the crease with the puck sitting near the goal line. Replay confirmed that the defenseman's sliding body pushed the puck in before he knocked the net off its moorings, but sadly the blatant crosscheck leading to the goal was not reviewable.