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Penguins and Taylor Hall

November 30, 2019, 3:26 PM ET [174 Comments]
Ryan Wilson
Pittsburgh Penguins Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
It is looking more and more like Taylor Hall would like to test the waters beyond the New Jersey Devils. Hall’s entire career has been playing on teams eligible (and with high probability) to earn the #1 overall pick. His career has been a waste and it is no fault of his own. He has been electric, entertaining, and incredibly effective while playing with bottom feeders. He deserves to forge his own path at this point. The signs are looking like he might.




Should the Penguins look into this? I say absolutely, yes. I would be pretty aggressive in acquiring Hall’s talents. I’m not very hung up on draft picks or prospects at this point. We are entering the final stretch of Crosby and Malkin being amazing players and the centerpiece of a Cup caliber team. Every fan base overrates their prospects and draft picks.

Will Nathan Legare or Sam Poulin be a good top six winger in the NHL? Maybe? When will they be ready to make a dent in the NHL? Who knows?

Don’t lose sight that the only thing that matters right now is making the current roster the best it can be. The 2024-25 season is irrelevant so I wouldn’t put any time into planning for it. Hell, the general manager won’t even be around for it so I’m not sure why he would care either.

For this reason I have no issue moving on from a Calen Addison, Sam Poulin, or Nathan Legare. If they go onto good NHL careers it doesn’t change my stance. By the time they are impact players it is too late for the Pittsburgh Penguins. So am I willing to move prospects like the ones I have listed for Taylor Hall? You betcha. First round pick? Adios. Make no mistake these are the kinds of pieces (promising prospect, 1st round pick), along with a quality roster player, it will probably take to pry away Hall and it is totally fine.

What about Taylor Hall’s next contract? What about it? Pay him. The Penguins have options to cut salary and make it work. Nick Bjugstad? What a no brainer. Alex Galchenyuk? We barely knew you. Patric Hornqvist? You’ve been a great solider, but we have different needs now. Justin Schultz? John Marino made that easy. Jack Johnson? Ha, well that would be too perfect. The point is the Penguins are spending mid-tier money in some areas where they aren’t getting a good return. Moving on from some of those contracts can easily pave the way for a big roster acquisition even with Matt Murray, Marcus Pettersson, and Jared McCann up for new deals.

I look at what Evgeni Malkin is doing with a quality winger now that Sidney Crosby is out of the lineup and it only reinforces the fact the team needs another bonafide top six winger so both of the Penguins stud centers can maximize their powers. This Taylor Hall guy is a Hart Trophy winner after all





Jim Rutherford’s biggest strength is being bold and going after something he sets his mind to. It is how the Penguins landed Phil Kessel. The Kessel trade (the first one) remains his best move as general manager of the Penguins. I think this poses another opportunity to hit a home run and for a better player no less. How old was Kessel when he became a Penguin? The same age Taylor Hall is right now, 28.

If the Devils reach a point where they feel like moving Hall is their best option they are going to want a mixture of quality pieces that help now and down the road. There will be conditions on the trade which will hinge on Hall re-signing with the team he is traded to. A prospect you have strong feelings about will definitely be part of a potential deal. Somebody like Bryan Rust, and not Nick Bjugstad, would be the kind of player included to help the Devils now.

After years of playing for the Oilers and Devils I’m pretty sure the prospect of signing a decent extension with the Pittsburgh Penguins would be very appealing for Hall. I’m down to deal. It is Taylor freaking Hall. Let’s close this Crosby/Malkin era out guns-a-blazing. The Penguins will never have this situation again.

Thanks for reading!
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