The Taylor Hall sweepstakes ended Monday with New Jersey trading the former MVP to the Coyotes for draft picks and three prospects, the struggling Devils announced.
In return for their superstar left wing and minor league center Blake Speers, the Devils received a lottery protected first-round draft pick in 2020, a conditional third-rounder in 2021 that could become a first, along with center Nate Schnarr, right wing Nick Merkley and 6-foot-7, 230-pound defenseman Kevin Bahl, considered by many to be the top prospect headed back to Newark but who is still a few years away from making an NHL impact.
It had been an “anxious” last few days for Hall, who had been held out of the lineup for two games over the weekend while the Devils fielded offers.
“It’s been hard, but I know it’s part of the business and I know they were just trying to get a deal done as soon as they can,” Hall told reporters on a telephone news conference. “Certainly when you’re in limbo and you’re healthy and you know you’re able to play and you’re told not to, it’s a hard feeling. Missing the first game was fine but after that, you start to think a little bit. I was just anxious to get moved.
“It’s been a whirlwind few days.”
The Devils also are retaining 50 percent of Hall’s current $6 million cap hit, which is pro-rated at just over $3.5 million. If the 2020 first-round pick is in the top three, the Devils will receive the Coyotes’ 2021 first-rounder. The third-round pick in the deal is to become a first-rounder if the Coyotes, currently first in their division, win a round in the Stanley Cup playoffs and re-sign Hall, who led the Devils with 25 points (six goals and 19 assists) in 30 games this season.
The pick would turn into a second-rounder if the Coyotes won a round or Hall re-signs.
For now though, the 28-year-old is expected to test free agency, where he could command up to $10 million per year on a long-term deal once the current seven-year, $42 million contract he signed with Edmonton ends this summer. That he could bolt once the season ends could have scared off potential trade suitors not wanting to give up a lot for a rental, especially one with an injury history such as Hall.
The Devils had talked to the 2018 MVP about an extension, but a deal was not reached and trade whispers grew as New Jersey sunk to second-to-last place in the league following big preseason expectations that came with the offseason arrivals of star defenseman P.K. Subban and No. 1 pick Jack Hughes.
Shortly after, trade talks intensified and the Devils pulled Hall from the lineup minutes before their game last Friday against the Colorado Avalanche.
Hall also was held out of Saturday’s game in Arizona, which the Devils won 2-1. Speers, the other piece headed west, is 22 and has one point in 10 games with the Binghamton Devils (AHL).
The Devils likely will continue selling off other veterans before the Feb. 24 deadline in order to build around first-overall picks Hughes and Nico Hischier (2017).
One complementary piece could be Bahl, the lengthy defenseman who Arizona selected with the 55th overall pick in 2018.
Bahl has 20 points in 28 games with the Ottawa 67’s of the junior Ontario Hockey League and has been lauded for his skating ability and physical presence. Meanwhile, Schnarr and Merkley are projected as bottom-six forwards.
The Devils initially acquired Hall from the Oilers in 2017 in exchange for defenseman Adam Larsson, a deal that shocked many at the time given the talent gap between the two players.
Larsson has since turned into a depth defenseman in Edmonton, while Hall was the Devils’ best offensive player in his three-plus seasons with the team.