The NHL made huge waves in sports-media circles on Wednesday in the aftermath of some wild wheeling and dealing.
The first move that made headlines is the shocking and rather perplexing trade between the Edmonton Oilers and the New Jersey Devils, with the Oilers shipping left wing Taylor Hall in exchange for Devils defenseman Adam Larsson. What sort of impact does this deal have for the league and our hockey-betting action alike? Let’s further dissect this groundbreaking trade below.
Shortly after this deal went down, the Montreal Canadiens and Nashville Predators also reached a blockbuster agreement themselves. Head over to our analysis on the huge P.K. Subban-Shea Weber trade after this to round out this day of pure NHL offseason madness.
Cash In on the Best Online Sportsbook Offers Now at TopBet!
Taylor Hall-Adam Larsson Trade Analysis and NHL Futures Odds Update
New Jersey Devils Acquire Taylor Hall – Now (+6,000)
Pros:
All things considered, standout forward Taylor Hall is a godsend for the New Jersey Devils. Most pundits consider the 24-year-old Hall as one of the best left wings in the league, and probably second-best only behind the Dallas Stars’ Jamie Benn at that.
After being selected first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2010 NHL Draft, Hall has done nothing but provide quality numbers on offense. Since making his league debut, the Calgary, Alberta native had become Edmonton’s second-leading scorer, having amassed 132 goals and 196 assists in 328 starts. He has also had no less than 50 points per season in three of his four years as a pro.
What made the trade much sweeter for the Devils is that Hall is just under contract for a relatively cheap price of $6 million per year for four years. Given the speedy and crafty winger’s age, skill set, stats and the team’s actual needs, New Jersey appears to have pulled off a massive heist from the Oilers’ bank of young talent.
Cons:
There’s no question that the Devils really need help on offense. But in trading defenseman Adam Larsson for a winger, their top line of defense is now in quite a predicament.
With Larsson, New Jersey had a solid blueline combination of youth and experience alongside veteran defenseman Andy Greene. However, Green is already 33 years of age, and putting a ton of faith in Larsson’s heir apparent – promising 21-year-old Damon Severson – might not work out as well as it would have with Larsson still in the defense’s mix instead.
Edmonton Oilers Acquire Adam Larsson – Now (+5,500)
Pros:
For as much as the Devils were starved of a premier scorer, the Edmonton Oilers were just as desperate to find some help on defense. Well, the worst team in the Western Conference last season needs a lot of help at a lot of positions, but an upgrade to their core of blueliners is more than welcome.
Larsson is more than capable of anchoring Edmonton’s blue line, is actually two years younger than Taylor Hall, and the team saves about $2 million in cap room by dealing Hall. Sadly, though, that’s about as positive as it gets for the Oilers’ side of the matter.
Cons:
Here’s where things get brutal.
As solid a pickup as Larsson is, he’s basically an above-average defenseman at best. Meanwhile, Hall is a top-three caliber left wing, and Edmonton could’ve had a young and fantastic starting offensive unit consisting of Hall, center and 2015 first-overall pick Connor McDavid, and the fourth-overall pick of this year’s draft in Finnish right wing Jesse Puljujarvi.
The popular consensus amongst the experts is that the Oilers didn’t get fair value for Hall at all, and this isn’t even the first time that general manager Pete Chiarelli had blown a deal involving a top-tier, first-round pick. In 2013 and back when he was still the GM of the Boston Bruins, Chiarelli pulled the trigger on another questionable trade involving Tyler Seguin – the second-overall pick of the Bruins from the 2010 draft who was selected after Taylor Hall (in a sick twist of irony and coincidence, we may add).
At least in that Seguin trade, the Bruins got four players out of the deal. Edmonton, meanwhile, is definitely on the wrong end of this new one-for-one deal. Right about now, a good number of Oilers fans are probably burning effigies of Chiarelli from their backyards.
The Verdict
Obviously, this is a lopsided trade that definitely tips in favor of the Devils. Although Larsson could have a breakout career in Edmonton moving forward, the margin of talent between he and Hall as of this moment is too disparaging for us to consider that the Oilers actually gained something remotely great out of this deal.
What are your thoughts on this blockbuster trade? Create a betting account now to place some stakes on either the Oilers or the Devils in the wake of this stunning development.
