A trade proposal surfaces for Chicago Blackhawks forward Taylor Hall

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Joshua Deeds
November 17, 2024 (9:59 PM)

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The Chicago Blackhawks rebuild isn't over by any means, and that should give Kyle Davidson an idea of what to do with Taylor Hall.

While Hall is a former Hart Trophy winner, and 3 seasons removed from his last 60-point campaign, it seems that in order to make lemonade out of this situation simply trade him.

His may not be as low as it was when he was injured last season, but he's failed to recapture the play that made him a dynamic winger.

He was a healthy scratch last game, and on November 14th, only saw him play 13:23 TOI.

It seems maybe he rushed back to the ice to soon, and now the Blackhawks and Connor Bedard are paying for it.

There's been unhappiness expressed with the fact he was a healthy scratch against the Canucks. While he hasn't requested a trade it's just one scenario that could play out for the Blackhawks.

And while it may sound cold, perhaps it'd be best if Davidson gets what he can out of the contract. While he may have to retain half of his salary($3 Million) he could get more assets in return for doing so.

The Hockey News's Rob Couch:

While the expectation was that Hall would fit right back in on the top line this season with Connor Bedard, Hall hasn't been the same player. He has been moved between the top two lines with many different linemates and only has two goals and six points in 17 games with a -5 rating on the season.

The "rebuild" may have entered a new phase prematurely, as the team wanted to be competitive, but they've underachieved so far this season.

Moving Hall would allow the team to promote some younger talent who are ready to make waves in the NHL.

And while Hall has said in the past he'd like to stick around, how viable is that if he isn't there to mentor Bedard, or provide the Blackhawks an ability to score by committee?

Couch gives us a good idea of what Davidson could fetch for Hall:

Hall will likely be headed to a contender at the trade deadline with the Blackhawks retaining half of his cap hit to reduce it to $3 million. He has moved around quite a bit in his career, but at this stage and with how the season has gone for him and the Blackhawks, I don't see Chicago getting a first-round pick for him. If the team can manage to acquire a decently high pick or a prospect for Hall, that would be the best case scenario as it stands right now.

While a trade may not manifest right away, the time to start making plans is now so when the deadline does roll-around, you're not stuck in a holding pattern for either party.