Eric Staal is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League. Erik is the oldest of the Staal brothers, which include former teammates Marc Staal, Jordan Staal and Jared Staal. He is a member of the Triple Gold Club, having won the Stanley Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006, and both the 2007 World Championships and the 2010 Winter Olympics with Team Canada.
Staal was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where he started playing hockey at the age of 4. He then played minor hockey in Thunder Bay, and played AAA for the Thunder Bay Kings organization and led his Bantam team to an All-Ontario Championship in the 1999–2000 season.