New Jersey Devils: Taylor Hall Playing Like A Clutch Superstar
By Nick Villano
The New Jersey Devils were able to end a lot of woes they’ve had against the Washington Capitals in a 4-3 overtime win on Thursday night. Taylor Hall’s clutch goal showed exactly why he’s the leader of this team.
What a beautiful goal it was. The Devils were reeling after blowing a two-goal lead against the Washington Capitals. The game went to overtime after the Caps scored with just over three minutes left in the game. That’s when Taylor Hall produced some magic.
Just look at that goal. It was almost entirely Hall from beginning to end. He skated towards the boards, poked the puck away from Evgeni Kuznetsov and raced towards Braden Holtby. He skated right up to him, and roofed a puck passed him for the win.
This performance shows that everything people said about Hall prior to coming to the Devils was wrong. The biggest opponents to Hall couldn’t deny his talent. He was the first-overall pick for a reason. However, they could scream from the rooftops that he wasn’t good when it mattered.
It’s hard to fault them at the time. He was playing with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Connor McDavid, two fellow first-overall picks. The talent on those Edmonton Oilers teams was insane. Yet, they still couldn’t win.
Hall is the best player in the NHL to never see the playoffs. So the detractors definitely had some fuel to put on the fire.
This season, Hall is putting all those whispers about his lack of clutchness to bed.
Hall and the Devils are on pace to make the playoffs. As Hall proved on Thursday night, he isn’t about to let this season slip away.
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Even when the Devils were losing, Hall was staying clutch. He’s recorded points in six straight games, despite losing four of them. After going down two goals to the Dallas Stars, he scored with 30 seconds left in the second to give his team new life. He helped put the Devils up two on the New York Islanders, which ended up being the goal that helped them get a point. Against the St. Louis Blues, Hall scored in the third period to tie the game, securing another point for the Devils.
We all know what happened against the Buffalo Sabres. Hall scored a goal by himself to put the Devils up 4-3 in the third. Although, the goal didn’t count because of a possibly-but-probably-not offsides call.
Devils fans are all in on Taylor Hall. When the Devils need a jump start, he’s the player they turn to. He can take the puck from one side of the ice to the other and score, just like he did in overtime.