New team emerges as frontrunner in Hall sweepstakes!

It is looking more and more likely that pending unrestricted free agent Taylor will be dealt by the New Jersey Devils ahead of the trade deadline and it seems like a frontrunner might already have emerged. 

While we cannot be sure of what Devils general manager Ray Shero will be asking for to acquire Hall, it seems like one team is ready to pay up to get the top player. 

According to NHL insider Pierre LeBrun, the Colorado Avalanche have already reached out to the Devils to discuss the possibility of acquiring Hall and that they now know the asking price. 

“Now it’s a matter of whether or not they want to pull the trigger,” said LeBrun during intermission of the Montreal Canadiens’ game on TSN on Thursday night. 

LeBrun had more to say during the segment on Insider Trading on TSN that same night. 

“They’ve got tons of cap room, they’re a Stanley Cup contender, they’ve got the assets. I spoke with GM Joe Sakic on Wednesday. Obviously, we couldn’t ‘say the name Taylor Hall’ for NHL tampering rules. But when I asked about a potential impact trade, this is what he said. No. 1, he wants to see his team healthy for awhile before he examines what it exactly he believes the needs are for his team. They’ve been hurt all year, they’re just starting to get healthy now. No. 2, Chemistry. He believes in that and he doesn’t want to do anything that takes away from the chemistry of this team. But, who’s kidding who? And these are my words, (add comma) not his. You talk to people around the league, the Avs looked at this, they’ve talked about it internally. They have what it takes to make this move if they decide to do it.”

His colleague Bob McKenzie also revealed that no one around the league is quite sure of the real asking price Shero has in mind in return for Hall. 

“What is going to be the asking price? That’s what a lot of teams want to know. Some teams are already speculating that it’s going to be the old conventional wisdom that if you’re going to have a high-end rental like Taylor Hall, then it’s going to cost you a first-round pick. An A+ prospect. A young player and maybe a conditional first-round pick if you happen to sign Taylor Hall to a long-term contract. My understanding though, is that the New Jersey Devils have not set up any parameters of any kind in terms of specifics as to what it will take and instead it is more , hey, make your best offer.”

So, does the Avalanche have the best offer on the table?