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50 Greatest New Jersey Devils Players Of All Time

By Nick Villano

Former New Jersey Devils players (L-R) Martin Brodeur, Scott Niedermayer, Ken Daneyko and Scott Stevens during Patrik Elias #26 jersey retirement ceremony prior to a game against the New York Islanders at the Prudential Center on February 24, 2018 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images)"n
Former New Jersey Devils players (L-R) Martin Brodeur, Scott Niedermayer, Ken Daneyko and Scott Stevens during Patrik Elias #26 jersey retirement ceremony prior to a game against the New York Islanders at the Prudential Center on February 24, 2018 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images)"n /
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Greatest New Jersey Devils player of all time: 20. Taylor Hall

Okay, stop booing me. Taylor Hall was legitimately one of the best players ever to put on a New Jersey Devils jersey. His MVP year, the only Hart Trophy in the history of Devils hockey, might be the greatest season out of any Devils forward ever. While he didn’t break Patrik Elias‘s (and now Jack Hughes‘s) single-season points record, between the point streak and the physical carrying the Devils to their first playoff appearance in years, it was a sight to behold.

Hall’s impact started the second he was traded here. “The trade is one-for-one,” referencing the tweet Bob McKenzie sent out when Hall was traded straight up for Adam Larsson, will always be a part of Devils history. That moment gave Devils fans as much excitement as anything we’ve ever seen.

His first season in New Jersey was demonstrably average. He had 20 goals and 39 assists in 72 games. After a postseason talk with Ray Shero, something clicked in Hall. He went from a middling player to the MVP. He scored 39 goals and hit 93 points in 2017-18. His most exciting stretch was his 26-game point streak. It was the 11th-best streak in NHL history (although there’s some controversy since he was injured in the middle of it).

After that MVP year, Hall had one injury-riddled season (although he was great in the 33 games he played), and one season where it seemed like he changed his game. He was still really good after his MVP year, but we don’t remember that because of everything that went with it. It was injuries and trade talks. It was a rough end to an amazing, yet short, journey. This will be too high for some Devils fans, and we acknowledge that, but that one season was so amazing, and the rest of the time is probably better than we remember.

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