New Jersey Devils: Five One-For-One Trades For Taylor Hall

Alex DeBrincat

The Chicago Blackhawks appear to have struck gold when the selected Alex DeBrincat in the 2nd round of the 2016 NHL Draft. He slipped in the draft thanks to his small stature, although in juniors he proved he can play with elite players and score goals at a very high rate. In 2018-19 he scored 41 goals and added in 35 assists without missing a game.

He did a lot of it separated from Patrick Kane and proved that he can score on his own while helping others succeed. He has one year remaining on his entry-level deal and could find himself in a similar situation to a lot of this years RFAs by this time next year. He is probably going to be looking for a similar amount of money to what Hall will get, so maybe the Blackhawks would be better off trading him.

Hall and Kane have both won the Hart Trophy in the last few years, and Hall might fit the timeline of the Blackhawks better anyway. Their window is the duration of the contracts of both Kane and Jonathan Toews, and they might be sellers once those guys are gone. Hall might be a better fit for that window then DeBrincat if they so choose.

It might be something to look at from a Devils point of view because they have lots of playmakers, but not as many pure shooters. DeBrincat would bring a type of goal scorer that the Devils lack outside of Kyle Palmieri. This one is obviously the biggest longshot due to cap restraints that the Blackhawks have, but it would be a player worth trading for if Taylor Hall didn’t want to stay in New Jersey.