As per TSN’s Darren Dreger, “Multiple teams. Multiple options be sorted through by the Hall camp this morning. Working on carving out a short list of clubs.”
That’s the latest on Taylor Hall and his quest to find the right fit in NHL free agency.
After Arizona Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong noted the Coyotes were moving on from UFA forward Taylor Hall, the plan for the winger when it came to free agency was to let everyone that wanted to be heard, make their pitch. As per The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun, starting Friday, Hall and his agent started conducting a series of Zoom meetings. He’s now using this time to weigh his options and make the decision he feels is best.
Related: Taylor Hall Open to Short-Term Deals in NHL Free Agency
As a result, a quick decision on day one wasn’t probably likely. A decision on day two might not come either. Some of that is because there are rumored to be a number of teams showing interest and partly because Hall has a few factors that may affect his decision.
Hall may make winning a priority, and that could eliminate a few teams. He could also focus on teams that have the ability to offer a long-term deal at the best possible annual average salary. That introduces a entirely different crop of hockey clubs into the mix. Finally, Hall could look to a team that will allow him the best opportunity personally explode offensively.
Unfortunately for Hall, there aren’t many teams that can offer everything.
Four Teams Rumors to Be in on Hall
While it’s rumored more that as many as 25 different teams let him know of their interest, here are four that are getting the most attention:
Avalanche the Early Favorites
The Colorado Avalanche have been in the Hall conversation for some time, mostly because they have cap space and are rumored to be ready to put all their money in on one big year with the window of next season to win it all. They’ve yet to make a big splash in free agency so insiders are wondering if they’re simply waiting on a Hall decision.
If Hall finds that kind of environment attractive, he’ll certainly look towards the Avs. This would be a “win now” play. It’s one and done. But, that one year would be special considering the fire power the Avalanche would be deploying in the top six.
Predators Clearing Space
Among those organizations who cleared some space and wanted one of those Hall meeting slots is the Nashville Predators. LeBrun explains that their clearing out space by trading Nick Bonino and waiving Kyle Turris was not a coincidence. And, they believe they’ll have a shot at getting Hall’s attention. There only move in free agency thus far was to sign Matt Benning to a two-year low-money deal.
With former head coach John Hynes now behind the bench, there’s familiarity there for the left-winger. There’s also a slot beside Matt Duchene just waiting for a player like Hall.
Blue Jackets Looking For Scoring
After moving a winger for Max Domi this week, speculation is that the Columbus Blue Jackets might be looking to fill the hole left by Josh Anderson’s exit with a player like Hall. They are a team that can offer a loner term and if Hall believes that team could be successful, they may have a shot.
The Blue Jackets have done a couple of smaller things in free agency, but the bigger move has yet to happen. They too must think they have a shot because they’ve done practically nothing since making a ton of room to do a lot.
Bruins Get in On Hall Bidding?
According to Joe Haggerty, “The Bruins are in the Taylor Hall bidding w/offer on a shorter term deal. He makes sense as a RW goal scorer able to finish off plays that can fit w/either Krejci or Coyle.”
Part of the buzz surrounding the Bruins might be that Torey Krug left and the Bruins have some cap money available that they didn’t otherwise. This is a longshot, but the talk isn’t exactly going away on Saturday.
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