New Jersey Devils star and reigning MVP Taylor Hall spoke candidly at a golf tournament on Wednesday. His comments, while possibly in jest, are still very interesting.
Sometimes, it only takes some small comments to speak volumes about a player’s mindset. I’m not sure if Taylor Hall’s comments should be taken with that much weight, but they still need to be heard. Hopefully, the New Jersey Devils are listening.
Hall on cap room & potential for Shero to add: (laughs) “I just sit here like you guys... I’d love to see us add a couple more pieces but at the end of the day that’s not my job. My job’s to come into camp as healthy as possible, as committed as possible, & just worry about that.
— John Matisz (@MatiszJohn) July 11, 2018
So, that happened.
The Devils star just told reporters that he would love to see the team do exactly what they didn’t do. He laughed while saying it, so we will likely read into something that isn’t THAT big of a deal, but the fact that he said it means something.
Hall obviously didn’t get into specifics. He didn’t say “I would love to play with James van Riemsdyk” or “our defense could use Calvin de Haan“. Instead, he laughed, and said he’d love to see more.
Hall also spoke on his feelings about losing players to free agency, and they’re tied closely to what he said about signing outside talent.
"“We’re going to have to find a way to make up for that. Those are guys that played key roles on our team, whether they were (acquired) at the trade deadline or just guys who came into camp and surprised and made a huge difference for us.”"
Again, Hall didn’t get into specifics, so we have to speculate. Was he talking about Brian Gibbons and Patrick Maroon? Is he upset that John Moore is now in Boston?
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One thing is clear, Hall wanted something he could get excited for this offseason. It’s hard to come to your star player, tell him your plan is to replace your veterans with unproven talent, and expect them to be on board. Most star players rather have a known commodity than an unknown one. Hall knows what some of the 27-30 year old players can do. He has no idea what a 22-year-old John Quenneville can do.
Should we take Hall’s comments with a grain of salt, or a mountain of stress? Hall’s a year away from contract negotiations. Could the Devils be in trouble of losing him in two years? It was clear Hall loved everything about playing playoff hockey. He’s going to want to do that again. If this is the team that goes into training camp, and Shero makes no trades or signings, then it will be an uphill battle.
That isn’t the be all end all. Hall loves playing with Nico Hischier. He seems to love playing in New Jersey. After tumultuous years in Edmonton, he seems to thrive off the lack of criticism from the media. It seems like the situation works for everyone. That’s why the Devils need to make moves to improve the lineup around Hall.
One thing is clear in all this, Hall knows his place but wants management to know he’d like some help. He isn’t putting a line in the sand. Will this push Shero to make a move he wouldn’t have made previously? Probably not, but it could help the Devils GM put something on the fast track.