5 New Jersey Devils Who Could Win NHL Awards

Taylor Hall For Hart Trophy

Taylor Hall is getting more respect than we expect this season, His betting odds have him 14/1 before the season begins, with only five players in the entire NHL with better odds. Only Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby, Nathan Mackinnon, Auston Matthews and last year’s winner Nikita Kucherov have better odds. That’s amazing company to hold after a season where you missed more games than you played.

That shows that Hall is already in the consciousness when it comes to Hart Trophy picks. He’s coming into a season where he’s playing for his next contract. He has every motivation possible to have a great season, even if he signs a new contract within the next month. He’s the type of player that always wants to prove himself, and getting that new contract won’t change how he plays. Working towards that new contract might, and he could look to dominate on every shift.

The Devils made major changes, but it’s more of the same for the top line. They are going with Hall, Nico Hischier and Kyle Palmieri. This line already has some of the best chemistry in the league, and at one point last season they were considered one of the best lines in all of hockey. Don’t remember after how bad the season ended? The header picture for the article about the best lines was this Devils trio.

Hall doesn’t have to worry about carry the entire offense, which actually might help his MVP odds. He won the award because he was so much better than all of the Devils in 2017-18. If he leads a team to prosperity that’s great up and down the lineup, he can win that way, too. That’s how Kucherov won last season.

Hall would have to break the 100-point mark if he were to get consideration for the award this season. There are too many great players this season, and he will need to be demonstratively better this season. Even coming off a major knee injury, if he can play like he did in the preseason, he absolutely can be a 100-point player.