Eric Staal will go from playing with one brother to another, as the elder Staal was traded to the New York Rangers for a second-round pick in this summer's draft, a second-round pick in 2017, and prospect Aleksi Saarela. To make the trade work with New York's salary cap situation, the Hurricanes will retain 50% of Staal's salary.
Staal will move on from the only franchise he's ever known, as he played over 900 games with the Hurricanes. He was one of the few remaining players from the team's Stanley Cup roster (Cam Ward will likely be traded soon), but he needed to be moved out as the Hurricanes rebuild their team. He'll go from playing with brother Jordan Staal to brother Marc Staal in New York. At 32 years old and with just 10 goals this year, Staal's best offensive days are behind him, but he can still contribute some offense - he scored over 20 goals just last year.
The big draw with Staal is that he remains a possession monster, registering a very strong 56.68% unadjusted Corsi-For % at five-on-five (per War On Ice). That will certainly help the Rangers, a team that has mediocre possession numbers, though it remains to be seen how Staal will fit in to the lineup. He'll likely have to move to a wing if he's going to play in the top six, as the Rangers already have two very strong centers in Derek Stepan and Derick Brassard. He could pivot the third line, with Kevin Hayes moving over, but he may not like being relegated to a bottom six role.
Two second round picks should certainly help the Hurricanes as they look to stockpile picks and build a solid foundation. Aleski Saarela is just 19 years old and plays in Finland, so there isn't a ton of book on him just yet. Eventually he'll move over to the U.S. minor leagues and the Hurricanes can assess his game; he's a 5-10" center that Hockey's Future has graded as a D though he has very good speed.
Fantasy Fallout
How Staal fits in with the Rangers will make or break his fantasy value. He hasn't registered many points this year playing on Carolina's top line, so there really isn't any place to go but up for his fantasy value. He didn't have the most talented linemates in Carolina - though they weren't scrubs either - so if he can crack the top six in New York, he is certainly worth an add in medium to deeper leagues. He probably won't be worth adding in shallower leagues, however, as his best offensive days are behind him.
Way Too Early Trade Judgment
The Rangers will absolutely enjoy Staal's ability to drive play, and he should help take a little bit of heat off a struggling defense. However, the two-second round picks are somewhat hefty price to pay, as the Rangers are up against the cap ceiling and are starting to see their championship window close. The defense is in rough shape and needs to be rebuilt; bad contracts exists on the blue line and the draft picks may have given the Rangers a bit more bang for their buck in acquiring a blueliner. Further, the Rangers have been trading away draft picks for a few years now as they try to win with Henrik Lundqvist in his prime, so the loss of two more draft picks (the Rangers have already traded their first rounder this year) is eventually going to hurt the organizational depth and talent pool in minors.