Back in the dark days of what seemed like a perpetual rebuild by the Edmonton Oilers, I always thought that it would be Taylor Hall leading the way when the team finally got as good as it is today. It would be Hall, a two-time Memorial Cup MVP, first overall draft pick in 2010 and a big enough deal the team pulled Kevin Lowe’s jersey out of mothballs and gave it to him, who would be the man.
Not so. Here we are seven years later with the Oilers at long last giving their fans something to yell about – other than profanities over another lost season — as they charge toward their first playoff spot in a decade, and it turns out that Hall was just a placeholder for Connor McDavid. Connor da man. Hall is still toiling with an also-ran, but he’s doing it half a continent and a conference away as a member of the New Jersey Devils.
Taylor Hall
Left Wing — shoots L
Born Nov 14 1991 — Calgary, ALTA
Height 6.01 — Weight 201 [185 cm/91 kg]
Drafted by Edmonton Oilers
Round 1 #1 overall 2010 NHL Entry Draft
BY THE NUMBERS
| Season |
Age |
Tm |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
+/- |
PIM |
S% |
ATOI |
| 2010-11 |
19 |
EDM |
65 |
22 |
20 |
42 |
-9 |
27 |
11.8 |
18:13 |
| 2011-12 |
20 |
EDM |
61 |
27 |
26 |
53 |
-3 |
36 |
13.0 |
18:13 |
| 2012-13 |
21 |
EDM |
45 |
16 |
34 |
50 |
5 |
33 |
10.4 |
18:37 |
| 2013-14 |
22 |
EDM |
75 |
27 |
53 |
80 |
-15 |
44 |
10.8 |
20:01 |
| 2014-15 |
23 |
EDM |
53 |
14 |
24 |
38 |
-1 |
40 |
8.9 |
19:13 |
| 2015-16 |
24 |
EDM |
82 |
26 |
39 |
65 |
-4 |
54 |
9.1 |
19:12 |
| 2016-17 |
25 |
NJD |
52 |
14 |
27 |
41 |
-8 |
20 |
8.1 |
19:34 |
| 6 yrs | EDM |
381 |
132 |
196 |
328 |
-27 |
234 |
10.6 |
18:58 |
|
| 1 yr | NJD |
52 |
14 |
27 |
41 |
-8 |
20 |
8.1 |
19:34 |
|
| Career |
433 |
146 |
223 |
369 |
-35 |
254 |
10.3 |
19:02 |
NOTABLE
So, how are we to assess Hall, who was considered by most as the Oilers best player for years on end before he was traded to New Jersey for Adam Larsson in deal that was characterized at the time – and still is in many corners — as a massive overpay? How do we perceive the best player on a bad team? Was Hall a me-first guy who never managed to elevate those around him or was he a victim of bad timing, a remarkable player who was surrounded by a team that just wasn’t good enough? A bit of both?
Those who never, ever were sold on Hall despite his undeniable talent and many memorable nights in Edmonton silks, no doubt lean toward the former. Some with reasonable arguments. Others much less reasonable – look, Hall left and boom, the Oilers are really good. I tend to side with the latter group. Hall did what we could, gave what he had. There were just too many other gaps in the line-up that Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan inherited for the start of the 2015-16 season, McDavid’s rookie campaign.
I, for one, would like to have seen what would have been possible with a little more overlap in the tenures of McDavid and Hall. Not necessarily as linemates, but as teammates. How would the Oilers look with Hall playing second fiddle to McDavid? It certainly, especially factoring in the emergence of Leon Draisaitl, would’ve given McLellan some dynamic options. Then again, there would be no Larsson. This team, with McDavid pushing for a scoring title, Cam Talbot chasing Grant Fuhr’s record for single season wins and tweaks throughout the line-up, is a different animal. This, we know.
THE STORY
Hall put it this way at the start of his first season with the Devils when he was asked about getting over the shock of being traded: “Yeah, in the sense that, in a breakup, you just try to forget about it as quick as you can, right? And that’s what I’m trying to do. It’s not easy . . . I’m not an 18-year-old kid that’s just being drafted to a team.
“A lot of the onus is on me to get in there and get used to things as quickly as possible. Certainly there are some guys on that team that have been around a long time, but I’ve played six years now, so I hope I can take on a bit of a leadership role and do my part there.” Hall is just now into his prime years as a player. His arrival in New Jersey hasn’t prompted any kind of bump in the standings for the Devils. At the same time, his departure from Edmonton has coincided with the Oilers finally getting off the floor.
For me, Hall is the most talented player the post-2006 Oilers have had outside of McDavid, and allowing that Draisaitl looks to be well on his way. In that regard, he is sort of the Doug Weight of his era – the best player on a team that didn’t win much of anything. Weight’s Oilers, at least, mixed in some memorable playoff moments. If Hall had been a member of this edition of the Oilers, a part of this return to contention outside of being the trade chip that landed Larsson, he’d be higher on this list already.
This series will look at the top 100 Edmonton Oilers from the NHL era 1979-80 to 2014-15, starting with 100 and working up.
Listen to Robin Brownlee Wednesdays and Thursdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the Jason Gregor Show on TSN 1260.
PREVIOUSLY:
- 29. Shawn Horcoff
- 30. Curtis Joseph
- 31. Bill Guerin
- 32. Dave Semenko
- 33. Petr Klima
- 34. Marty McSorley
- 35. Jordan Eberle
- 36. Patt Hughes
- 37. Jeff Beukeboom
- 38. Craig Muni
- 39. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Is it safe to assume that #27 is going to be Larsson?
What?
i would put Guerin ahead of Hall….IMO….nice new page boys….
Sometimes I wonder if Hall is going to be the modern day Marcel Dionne – a good player destined to be on under-performing teams for his career.
Dionne wasn’t a “good” player. He is the greatest hockey player to come out of Quebec after Lemieux. That he played on an obscure and generally bad team is indeed no different than halls time in EDM and now nj (has anyone ever met a devils fan?).
I don’t think your comparison is that far off except that Dionne was a far better player.
I agree that TH is/was the best player on the Oilers since we traded Doug Weight…….outside of CM. For me, I have a ton of respect for Taylor because he was loyal to the end and always played hard. I think its fair to say he was a little polarizing ( for reasons I do not understand) but for me he always tried his hardest, without a good supporting cast, especially on defence.
I remember many many games where he was the only one skating.
Agree. it’s too bad he didn’t have more talent around him I blame it on the organization.
Taylor Hall is the league leading coward.
I wish I could trash this more than once.
You can. New site glitch? But I’ve already trashed it twice and I’ll do it again right now.
You can
When I hear comments like this from so called Oiler fans I think it would have been nice if Connor fell to another team. Some fans simply don’t deserve him.
But you are the king ?.
But you are the ? king
Why don’t you back that statement up with some actual facts.
I think I’d put him on the same level as a Hemsky. For a long time, in their respective eras, each guy was the only reason to watch a team that was otherwise quite terrible.
An objectively outstanding player that somehow got a bad reputation with a large segment of the fan base here. It’s unfortunate that he’s still on a bad team. We may never get to see what he looks like when surrounded by a competent roster.
Note: Heads up, to O N, but did you know that one can hit the trash or cheer buttons and run up multiple, multiple replys?
Just by leaning on the buttons?
Yup but for me once you refresh the page the counter is back to only 1 increase. But yeah seems to be a small bug there.
[color=blue]this text is blue[/color]
There is no debating the talent. The attitude though is open for discussion.
Heard many stories about Hall regarding his on/off-ice attitude, none of them good. To be fair, I don’t know where the truth begins and ends though. Where there’s s smoke, there’s fire.
Met the man several times and was nothing but out going. Huge respect for what he had to go through here, some posters on here thought he was going to be the messiah!
His attitude is what kills it for me. Horrible body language on the ice
If Taylor Hall isn’t your favourite “played for his point totals than his teams totals” player I don’t know who is.
good player but probably not the right personality to be the face of a rebuilding NHL team in a rabid hockey market.
There’s no proof of that and incompetent management is the real issue for Hall’s time with the Oilers
Maybe but he strikes me as a somewhat shy person who isn’t comfortable being the leader.
So not surrounding him with any kind of veteran leadership doesn’t fall on the management? Not shoring up an inadequate defense doesn’t fall on management?
Now that robin has reached the 30th or better level the debates will heat up.
That hall is only one rank ahead of horcoff is surprising. Hall was/is a vastly better player than horcoff.
On skill alone, but Horcoff was a first line centre in game 7 of a Stanley cup finalist so that counts for something.
Taylor Hall is a “better player” than several Oilers above him on this list. It’s not a list of the 100 best Oiler players.
Love the player in Taylor, disliked his play.
As we used to say to the pre-madonnas on our club, go play with yourself, because you are to good to play with us.
Cheers brownman
What was she before she became Madonna?
I’m VERY interested to see where Connor falls on this list. Talent alone he should probably be #3 – hard to put him in front of Messier and obvs 99 is #1 for all eternity. I could see cases made that you gotta win Cups to be that high tho. This is a great list.
Sorry to call you out Boss Man but… “This series will look at the top 100 Edmonton Oilers from the NHL era 1979-80 to 2014-15, starting with 100 and working up.”
I believe our beloved Connor was drafted post 2014-2015.
That being said, Connor has made his point already to be #3 had he been eligible for this list and I personally have no doubt that one day he will be the #2 greatest Oiler of all time.
Long live the Oilers!!
Nope. Liked Hall but to many egos in the room thanks. Wish him the best in Jersey. He’s a winger. You don’t build a team around wingers. This is McD’s team now. Fine thanks. Nothing to see here, move along, move along.
Taylor Hall is Michael Cammalleri 2.0. Glad the Oilers sent him to play with his mentor. Not a winner.