Sports Genealogy Case Study: The Staals (Source: Getty Images)

This year’s Madden video game has this feature called Superstar mode where you build a player from scratch, put him through the rigors of draft evaluation camps and then control his life on and off the field for the duration of his career. It definitely gives you a different perspective of each position. Although I’m not sure if I really get anyone’s motivation behind sincerely building a character who’s an offensive lineman or punter; to me it’s the fun equivalency of going to IKEA on a weekend and traversing around all the bickering couples. 

The one thing that struck me about the Superstar mode is the intro screen where you get to select your parents. You can cycle through sets of parents until you find that ‘right’ fit – it’s kind of a reverse Madonna adoption thing. The profile on your virtual Mom and Dad includes any history of football achievement (e.g. Dad was the Derrick Brooks of his generation), significant sporting accomplishments (Mom was a track star in college), hobbies, and IQ.  Essentially all these factors add up to decide what position your player is best suited to play and how good he initially is. One comment, the parental traits in the game are very PG. It would definitely make the game more interesting if the Madden game-makers added in some realistic genealogy comments (e.g. if Dad was an NFL star and the IQ on Mom is listed as below average, then why beat around the bush; just call her a trophy wife).

Perhaps the best example of genealogy in sports today is being played out as a work-in-progress NHL case study. The Staal brothers from Thunder Bay, Ontario have the potential to collectively dominate a sport like no other group of siblings. The Staal clan is made up of Eric Staal, centre for  the Carolina Hurricanes, Marc Staal, defenseman for the New York Rangers, Jordan Staal, forward for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Jared Staal, current Sudbury Wolf and future NHL draftee.

Fresh off a 100-point season, a playoff scoring crown and a Stanley Cup all in his second NHL season, Eric is without question the leader of the Staal clan.  At only 22 years of age he is considered one of the best players in the league.  Jordan, 18 wasn’t even supposed to crack the Penguins opening night roster; the team had every intention to send him down but he played his way onto the team with exceptional play and poise. Marc was a top-10 draft pick by the Rangers and projects as an impact offensive and shutdown defenseman – he was instrumental in shutting down the opposition’s top players in last year’s World Junior Championships. Jared is still an unknown commodity because of his age but his pedigree almost assures him a spot to be an impact NHL player. 

Everyone’s fully aware that six Sutter brothers were able to make it to the NHL – a pretty impressive feat considering how many people fail in their attempts along the way. The thing about the Sutter’s is that they were mainly a mix of grinders and checkers; the Staal brothers all have the chance to become major superstars (Eric already is). That’s absolutely phenomenal and it begs the question, why didn’t Ma and Pa Staal have more kids? I’m actually surprised that no one’s approached the parents yet and tried to negotiate some sort of “stud fee” deal a la the practice in the horse racing world.

There’s no question that the upbringing the brothers received has shaped the people they are but a large part of their success has to be attributed to the genetics that have been handed down to them.  Four brothers, four potential NHL superstars; there’s just too much “coincidence” going on there for genetics to be ignored. Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux are the two greatest offensive players of all-time yet they both had brothers who started playing hockey at the same age and had the same initial opportunities and we know how they turned out.