New Jersey Devils: Taylor Hall Trade Brought Nice Prospects

In hindsight, the New Jersey Devils have some really nice prospects as a result of the Taylor Hall trade.

It was a sad day for New Jersey Devils fans when they traded Taylor Hall. He is the only player in the history of the organization to win the Hart Trophy as the MVP of the league when he did it in 2018. He carried the team on his back into the playoffs and it was so much fun to watch. With that said, the writing was on the wall that he was going to test free agency so they traded him.

They sent him off to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for some picks and prospects. Kevin Bahl, Nate Schnarr, Nicholas Merkley, a first-round pick (2021), and a third-round pick came to New Jersey for Hall and Blake Speers. That first-round pick was the key to the deal and they selected Dawson Mercer with that pick at 18th overall.

It was a great trade for New Jersey in hindsight. Some people were mad at it at first but the Devils got some really nice prospects out of Hall who played for the Coyotes in 35 regular-season games and 9 playoff games. Now, he signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres and will do this all over again next offseason.

Dawson Mercer is going to be a great player one day. He currently plays for the Chicoutimi Sagueneens of the QMJHL where he is doing awesome. In 2020-21 so far, he has four goals and three assists for seven points in five games. It is not bad for a kid who is hyped to be a good two-way guy. The Devils hit a home run with this draft pick.

Kevin Bahl was the bigger name prospect at the time of the trade. He was in the Coyotes system after being made a second-round (55th overall) pick in the 2018 NHL Draft. He was a great defenseman for the Ottawa 67’s during his junior career. He is a magnificent 6’7″ and 240 lbs. The big kid is a defensive defenseman that might be able to have a bit of offensive punch to his game. The Devils need this kid to come in one day and be that big mean defenseman that every good team needs.

Merkley got himself into four New Jersey Devils games last season before the pause. He was noticeable at times and racked up a goal and assist in those four games. He was one of the lesser-known prospects in the trade but if he made a nice career for himself with the Devils, it would really make the trade look that much better.

As you can see, there is a lot of home to come from this trade with Arizona. The key to New Jersey’s future success right now is the young players. They traded their best asset on an expiring contract for a really nice haul of picks and prospects. If the drafted players turn out great along with the already established prospects, this trade will go down as a great one for the Devils. It keeps looking better and better every day and hopefully, it stays that way.