'Blast from the past': How Taylor Hall found his M...

PHILADELPHIA -- Before Logan Stankoven was Taylor Hall's linemate on the Carolina Hurricanes, he was a Taylor Hall fan. Stankoven was 7 years old when Hall, now 34, debuted with the Edmonton Oilers in 2010. He loved watching Hall flying down the wing, using his speed to create offensive chances. "He's so fun to watch," Stankoven said. "Plus he can just crush some guys. Definitely keep your head up if he's around." The Ottawa Senators witnessed that firsthand in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs. In Game 3, Hall delivered a punishing forechecking hit on defenseman Jake Sanderson, with his shoulder connecting with Sanderson's head. Sanderson didn't play in Game 4. Hall was given a minor penalty and nothing further from the NHL Department of Player Safety. Ottawa fans were not pleased. "I didn't know what the reaction was going to be. Then I get the puck on the first shift and I'm getting booed," Hall said. "I just had to refocus a little bit and know they were really going to be physical on me because of what happened. You can run away from it or lean into it, and that's what I chose to do." As the Hurricanes roll through the playoffs at a record pace -- they're the first team to sweep the opening two rounds since the NHL's current playoff format was established in 1987 -- Hall has leaned all the way in. He has delivered pulverizing hits. He's been an antagonist, drawing more penalties per 60 minutes (1.86) than any other Hurricanes skater. But more than anything, he's been a dominant offensive force: 12 points (three goals, nine assists) in eight games, including a game-winning overtime goal in Game 2 against the Philadelphia Flyers. His line with Stankoven and Jackson Blake is the best in the postseason, generating 67.2% of the expected goals at 5-on-5. It's been a while since hockey fans saw this version of Taylor Hall. "A lot of people are saying this is a blast from the past from him," Stankoven said. Hall is 16 seasons removed from being the first overall pick in the NHL draft. He's nine seasons removed from winning the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP with the New Jersey Devils. When Carolina acquired him in 2025 as the sidebar to the large-type headline of the Mikko Rantanen trade, it was his sixth team in six seasons. Now, he has found a home with the Hurricanes and has played himself into the Conn Smythe conversation through two rounds of the playoffs. "It's unreal. It's everything I could ask for. It's a lot of fun to come to work right now. We work hard, but we do it with a smile on our face," he said. "It's not like this everywhere." IN 2010, there was one question perplexing the NHL: "Taylor or Tyler?" Taylor Hall was a tough winger for the Windsor Spitfires, scoring 106 points in 57 games in his final Ontario Hockey League season while winning a second straight Memorial Cup. Tyler Seguin was an elite skilled center for the Plymouth Whalers, scoring 106 points in 63 games in his last OHL campaign. The Oilers were the worst team in the NHL in 2009-10 and retained their first overall pick in the draft lottery. They went Taylor over Tyler. "I don't think I've ever met a more focused, competitive athlete," Oilers GM Steve Tambellini said at the time. Taylor Hall, center, was the No. 1 pick in the 2010 draft, ahead of Tyler Seguin, right, at No. 2 and Erik Gudbranson, left, at No. 3. Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty ImagesHall was the bright light in what would become known as the Oilers' "Decade of Darkness" that spanned from their 2006 Stanley Cup Final loss to Carolina through the miraculous arrival of Connor McDavid in 2015. Hall had 328 points in 381 games. He had seven different coaches. He didn't get a sniff of the playoffs. In 2016, a new phrase entered the lexicon of NHL fans: The "trade is one for one." That was how venerable hockey insider Bob McKenzie of TSN started his tweet describing the deal that sent Hall to the Devils for right-shot defenseman Adam Larsson, the fourth overall pick in 2011 who hadn't quite met his potential yet. ESPN gave the Devils an A-plus. The Oilers got a C. Watch your favorite events in the newly enhanced ESPN App. Learn more about what plan is right for you. Sign Up Now After failing to make the playoffs again in his first season with the Devils, Hall would have a career-defining season in 2017-18: 40 goals and 55 assists for 95 points in 76 games, lifting New Jersey to its first playoff berth in six seasons. Hall won the Hart Trophy for a torrid stretch that saw him score points in 36 of his last 40 games of the season, including a remarkable run of 44 points in 22 games. With free agency looming at the end of the 2019-20 season, the Devils shipped him to the Arizona Coyotes during an uncharacteristic spending spree from the now-defunct franchise. He spent 35 games with the Coyotes before becoming the most coveted free agent forward in 2020. Hall stunned the NHL by signing a one-year, $8 million contract with the Buffalo Sabres -- not exact

'Blast from the past': How Taylor Hall found his M...

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