Hall, Coyotes talking contract with NHL season paused: report

[mfitz804]

1 hour ago, vadvlfan said:

So true. If you're a UFA, and you don't want to give home town discount, you'll be booed whenever you return. I was pleasantly surprised when fans clapped/"cheered" for Ovi when he scored his 700.  BTW,  if it's true Hall never received an offer, and was traded, why is He responsable?  Maybe his agent said he wanted to test free agency? He said devils never gave him an offer. (maybe Devils got cold feet)? But we'll never know, unless Shero or Fizty says so.

Also, I don't get why people still boo Parise when he comes to town? Does it ever end? I guess not. We should boo Hall I guess. 

That whole “boo every time he gets the puck” mindset is ridiculous to me, and if you are focused on doing that, you probably aren’t watching the game as closely as I do.

Hall is a different story, and I don’t think he did anything to be booed for. He wanted to play on a better team, so he didn’t re-sign on a sh!tty one. It had nothing to do with the Devils not making an offer, he wasn’t interested in one. 

[Jerzey]

14 hours ago, Nicomo said:

I’d love to have Hall back. Him and Pietrangelo are pretty much the only UFA’s worth any big money this summer. 

I have a feeling we could see Fitzgerald (or whoever the GM is) go after Hoffman. Which I wouldn’t mind at all.

[NJDevils1214]

15 hours ago, mfitz804 said:

That whole “boo every time he gets the puck” mindset is ridiculous to me, and if you are focused on doing that, you probably aren’t watching the game as closely as I do.

Hall is a different story, and I don’t think he did anything to be booed for. He wanted to play on a better team, so he didn’t re-sign on a sh!tty one. It had nothing to do with the Devils not making an offer, he wasn’t interested in one. 

I agree on Hall, but I don't think a majority of our fan base pays attention to what's going on. I think I remember hearing some people booing Gionta after he left and that was about as clean, 0 ill will, a break as you can get. 

[Devilsfan118]

23 hours ago, RunninWithTheDevil said:

I'm not some crazy analyst or rabid numbers kinda fan, but I feel like we have one of the dumbest fanbases in terms of hockey IQ.  I literally saw someone comment the other day that LOU LAMORIELLO should have done more to keep Hall. You can't make this sh!t up. 

Go and read some of the stuff Leafs fans post on twitter anytime news breaks.  It's... shockingly bad.

Granted, there are way more Leafs fans than Devils fans so you'd expect more crazies as a result but still.. it's bad.

[Devilsfan118]

But that aside, guys I don't think there's a team in this league that's going to give Hall the stupid 7-year 10M+ per contract he probably would've gotten had the world not gone to sh!t.

The cap's probably going to stay stagnant for the next few years, if not decrease, so no team is going to shell out big bucks for Hall at this point.

Call me crazy, but I think Hall's going to have to sign a 1 or 2 year deal at like.. 8M tops.  It's a brand new world and no team is going to throw money at him imo.

And fvck no, I don't want him near this locker room again.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

17 hours ago, Daniel said:

This.  It’s a syndrome that analytics people get bogged down in fretting over some theoretical cap hit to production ratio.  Whatever you pay a player is about whether it prevents you from doing something you otherwise might be in a position to do down the road.  It’s not an exact science, but it’s not a fantasy league where you have the ability to get Connor McDavid the next season.  

Don't lump me in with the "analytics people".  I've never been a slave to numbers the way a lot of that crowd can be.  

Devils can obviously pay Hall just about anything, given their cap space...sure doesn't seem like Hall making big money for several years would hurt the Devils anytime soon.  I'm just not sure how good he's really going to be from here on out.  Like I've said, I think three years or so into his deal, people are going to be complaining either about underwhelming production, being too brittle, or even both.  And you can bet there will be plenty of "Look what he's getting paid!" when that happens.  

I do think where some Devils fans are completely off-base is that he's somehow this toxic presence.  I never really got that vibe from him.  He doesn't seem to be much of a needle-mover, as I've pointed out (look at the two teams that he played for fared with him and without him), but it's also fair to point out that the Devils suddenly stopped getting God-awful goaltending after he left...and said goaltending zoomed right past mediocre to very good.  2017-18 was obviously very special for him and a lot of fun to have watched unfold, but as has been discussed, more and more it looks like an outlier, that season where everything broke right for him (just look at his shooting% that year).  

 

16 hours ago, vadvlfan said:

So true. If you're a UFA, and you don't want to give home town discount, you'll be booed whenever you return. I was pleasantly surprised when fans clapped/"cheered" for Ovi when he scored his 700.  BTW,  if it's true Hall never received an offer, and was traded, why is He responsable?  Maybe his agent said he wanted to test free agency? He said devils never gave him an offer. (maybe Devils got cold feet)? But we'll never know, unless Shero or Fizty says so.

Also, I don't get why people still boo Parise when he comes to town? Does it ever end? I guess not. We should boo Hall I guess. 

There's always going to be fans who do that.  In Parise's case, some fans took "Don't worry about it!" (uttered by Parise as he got off the team bus after he returned to NJ after the 2012 SCF, to some fans who were begging him to stay) as some binding promise that he would absolutely be back for the 2012-13 season.  

I don't get on players who take advantage of their UFA rights...what's the point of waiting to exercise it if you're supposed to just re-sign with the team that drafted you?  Guys like Parise wait several years to get that shot.  If he wants to go elsewhere and another team is willing to pay him an absolute ton to get him, so be it.  Sure, sucks to lose certain guys, not like we don't grow attached to them...but it happens.  

If a beloved Devil UFA signs with the Blowshirts, yeah, I'm booing that guy.  Not due to any inferiority complex re:  the Rangers and NY...the Rangers' history doesn't warrant that...this isn't the Yankees vs the Mets (though Ranger fans have always thought of their team as the Yankees of the NHL).  But the Rangers are still a bitter rival...even then, it really depends on the players.  I didn't really feel any animosity towards Driver or MacLean.  I thought Holik was insanely overpaid.  I did feel some towards Gomez mostly because he just sat there in his press conference while Sather & Co blathered on about how the Devils didn't know how to use him.  

I'm pretty indifferent towards Kovy too (especially since he's been about what I thought he'd be since coming back...a shell of himself), though out of curiosity (given his long absence from the NHL), I did follow him, to see how he'd fare.  I could see why some fans would feel like he fvcked the Devils over (especially if they feel that his money effectively killed any chance the Devils had to keep Parise).  I always saw it as more of "Well if the guy is really THAT unhappy here now, so much so that he's willing to 'retire' just to get out of his contract, then why would we still want him?"  

[Satans Hockey]

It's a sport, sometimes it's just fun to boo.

Edited May 14, 2020 by Satans Hockey

[Daniel]

35 minutes ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

Don't lump me in with the "analytics people".  I've never been a slave to numbers the way a lot of that crowd can be.  

Devils can obviously pay Hall just about anything, given their cap space...sure doesn't seem like Hall making big money for several years would hurt the Devils anytime soon.  I'm just not sure how good he's really going to be from here on out.  Like I've said, I think three years or so into his deal, people are going to be complaining either about underwhelming production, being too brittle, or even both.  And you can bet there will be plenty of "Look what he's getting paid!" when that happens.  

I do think where some Devils fans are completely off-base is that he's somehow this toxic presence.  I never really got that vibe from him.  He doesn't seem to be much of a needle-mover, as I've pointed out (look at the two teams that he played for fared with him and without him), but it's also fair to point out that the Devils suddenly stopped getting God-awful goaltending after he left...and said goaltending zoomed right past mediocre to very good.  2017-18 was obviously very special for him and a lot of fun to have watched unfold, but as has been discussed, more and more it looks like an outlier, that season where everything broke right for him (just look at his shooting% that year).  

 

 

Assuming the cap stays relatively stable, I'd give Hall 7 years $60-65 million.  He's more likely to end up on LTIR towards the end than be just a really terrible player.  At the absolute worst, he's Corey Perry bad towards the end of his deal.  While Anaheim is a bad team, it's not because they had to buy him out.  

The Devils are in a position to own free agency if they want to, and it will probably be the last time for a while that can happen.   

[mfitz804]

2 hours ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

I do think where some Devils fans are completely off-base is that he's somehow this toxic presence.  I never really got that vibe from him. 

Agreed. Nobody was saying that when he essentially carried us on his back into the playoffs while winning a Hart trophy. 

[devlman]

19 hours ago, mfitz804 said:

That whole “boo every time he gets the puck” mindset is ridiculous to me, and if you are focused on doing that, you probably aren’t watching the game as closely as I do. 

If you notice every time a player touches the puck then you’re probably paying close attention to the game.

[mfitz804]

1 hour ago, devlman said:

If you notice every time a player touches the puck then you’re probably paying close attention to the game.

Or you’re only paying close attention to one guy. 

[Jerzey]

Hall was getting kinda douchy towards the end. Remember the whole “where’s the booing now” thing with his hand to his ear after accidentally knocking a puck in while slinging? He obviously didn’t like it in NJ. I say duck him.

Edited May 14, 2020 by Jerzey

[mfitz804]

33 minutes ago, Jerzey said:

Hall was getting kinda douchy towards the end. Remember the whole “where’s the booing now” thing with his hand to his ear after accidentally knocking a puck in while slinging? He obviously didn’t like it in NJ. I say duck him.

He definitely did not like it here. 

[pumpkin cutter]

Imagine getting plucked from your home and dropped into a place you never wanted to go to. that's what happened to hall. I think he did a great job handling it while here. 

[Nicomo]

6 minutes ago, pumpkin cutter said:

Imagine getting plucked from your home and dropped into a place you never wanted to go to. that's what happened to hall. I think he did a great job handling it while here. 

Agreed. Lot of sour grapes up in here. 

[Jerzey]

4 minutes ago, pumpkin cutter said:

Imagine getting plucked from your home and dropped into a place you never wanted to go to. that's what happened to hall. I think he did a great job handling it while here. 

I empathize with Hall and I think he handled himself like a pro until the very end. His run in NJ is like the entire run of Game of Thrones. Enjoyed the whole thing until the very end and now I’m left with a bad taste in my mouth.

[Daniel]

8 minutes ago, pumpkin cutter said:

Imagine getting plucked from your home and dropped into a place you never wanted to go to. that's what happened to hall. I think he did a great job handling it while here. 

I get the sense that he was willing to sign an extension here until things started looking really dysfunctional towards the end when both sides realized it would be best to cut bait.  I personally would still welcome him back, and I mean how couldn't any real fan if you consider that we will have gotten a top ten pick, Kevin Bahl, and Nick Merkely to have loaned him to Arizona for 35 games and being on the hook for at least one less year. 

The only ex-Devil I've ever booed was Gomez.  A Devils fan that would boo Taylor Hall is the same person who really, really likes saying "you suck" after the Devils score a goal.  My allergies for those fvcking fans, has returned.

[mfitz804]

33 minutes ago, Daniel said:

and I mean how couldn't any real fan if you consider that we will have gotten a top ten pick, Kevin Bahl, and Nick Merkely to have loaned him to Arizona for 35 games and being on the hook for at least one less year. 

The same fans think we got a bad return for those 35 games of Hall..,

[Daniel]

1 minute ago, mfitz804 said:

The same fans think we got a bad return for those 35 games of Hall..,

And if there's a silver lining to COVID-19, it might be that I'll be socially distanced from those fans for a certain period of time. 

[Nicomo]

45 minutes ago, Jerzey said:

I empathize with Hall and I think he handled himself like a pro until the very end. His run in NJ is like the entire run of Game of Thrones. Enjoyed the whole thing until the very end and now I’m left with a bad taste in my mouth.

The ending of GoT was 100% the fault of the 2 guys that rushed it and failed to stick the landing though. 

The sh!t show that was the 2019-2020 Devils was not completely on Taylor Hall. Not even close. Plenty of blame to go around there. 

[Daniel]

1 minute ago, Nicomo said:

The ending of GoT was 100% the fault of the 2 guys that rushed it and failed to stick the landing though. 

The sh!t show that was the 2019-2020 Devils was not completely on Taylor Hall. Not even close. Plenty of blame to go around there. 

JFC, the ending of GOT was perfectly fine.  Arguably, the last ten minutes was lame, but it was either that or (i) the White Walkers win; or (ii) we gazillion years of self righteous nonsense from Khaleesi. 

In a similar vein, Taylor Hall's departure from the Devils had very little to do with Taylor Hall, but more to do with Ray Shero being unable to build a winner.  That said, the Devils are in a unique position to sign him for less money than they would have and to have gotten the trade compensation in the process.  Seriously, if Fitzgerald or whoever the GM is can manage to pull that off, we're talking a bigger deathblow than the Devils using the compensation from the Stevens tampering to draft Parise. 

[Nicomo]

3 minutes ago, Daniel said:

JFC, the ending of GOT was perfectly fine.  Arguably, the last ten minutes was lame, but it was either that or (i) the White Walkers win; or (ii) we gazillion years of self righteous nonsense from Khaleesi. 

It was absolutely not “perfectly fine.” It was horrendous. There’s a reason it’s the most panned series finale since Dexter. And that’s just the last episode. The entire season was a mess. Between rushed character development, anticlimactic storylines, to a battle nobody could see...The only decent episode was the slow burn lead up to the battle where Brienne was knighted. The rest was sh!t. 

[Satans Hockey]

1 hour ago, pumpkin cutter said:

Imagine getting plucked from your home and dropped into a place you never wanted to go to. that's what happened to hall. I think he did a great job handling it while here. 

Oh boo hoo. They get paid plenty well to deal with that, it's part of the gig. 

[Daniel]

6 minutes ago, Nicomo said:

It was absolutely not “perfectly fine.” It was horrendous. There’s a reason it’s the most panned series finale since Dexter. And that’s just the last episode. The entire season was a mess. Between rushed character development, anticlimactic storylines, to a battle nobody could see...The only decent episode was the slow burn lead up to the battle where Brienne was knighted. The rest was sh!t. 

Battle nobody could see: real battles are chaotic, you're not supposed to see them very well.

Rushed character development:  what characters?  They've been there forever.

I grant you that everything after the destruction of King's Landing was kind of lame, but if the show had to end, there's not much you could do to make it much better.

So far as series endings go, it was far superior to Seinfeld (I'm not a Dexter fan, so can't opine on that one), probably on par with The Wire, but doesn't hold a candle to Breaking Bad.  It's constrained by what the show is about more than anything though.

Edited May 15, 2020 by Daniel

[Nicomo]

1 minute ago, Satans Hockey said:

Oh boo hoo. They get paid plenty well to deal with that, it's part of the gig. 

He did deal well with it though. He won an MVP, took the team to their first playoffs in years, tried to be a leader (asked for Jack’s locker to be put next to his, etc). The only thing I didn’t like was the hand to the ear thing, but whatever, it really wasn’t that big of a deal, and I quickly forgot about it. The only good memories I really have of this team in recent memory is pretty much thanks to Taylor Hall. I’d welcome him back. And he’d instantly be our best player again.