Hall for Larsson, Straight Up

To New Jersey	Pos	Age	GP	G/W	P	Years	Cap
Taylor Hall	F	24	82	26	65	4	$6 mil
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To Edmonton	Pos	Age	GP	G/W	P	Years	Cap
Adam Larsson	D	23	82	3	18	5	$4.167 mil

The first of two tremendous hockey deals dropping on Wednesday afternoon saw the Edmonton Oilers finally move one of their key core players for some defense, when they traded Taylor Hall to the New Jersey Devils for Adam Larsson.  Hall, the 1st overall pick in 2010, Larsson the 4th overall pick in 2011, these were two very highly touted players and both could have been Oilers, if Edmonton drafted just a little bit differently in 2011.

The Devils are going to get themselves a premier forward, who is finally coming around to be a more mature player and he certainly won't be overshadowed on a team in New Jersey.  His free-wheeling nature should be an asset for a Devils team that really lacked any sort of character, ever since Scott Stevens left the team, so he'll be a great shot in the arm for this club.

As much as the Devils do not really impress on paper, this does become a very positive situation for Hall, reuniting with former junior teammate Adam Henrique, a player he could just as easily line up with and do some damage with.  I would be very inclined to project Hall in the 75-point range for the coming season and likely give Henrique a good boost as well.

In Larsson, the Oilers will get some quality help on their blueline, but he hasn't quite blossomed into the guy that could have gone with the 1st overall pick in that 2011 draft just yet.  Certainly, the Devils were not exactly a bustling hub for a lot of offense over the years, but even still, Larsson has had his ups and downs and his ups have been pool worthy, including the 2016 season.

It will be interesting to see how Larsson fits into the system for the Oilers and who he may be paired with, but they will get a good all-around defender, who will be more likely to play every game, than the injury prone Hall.  I would project a bit of a lift for Larsson's numbers, as the change of scenery will be good for him.  My early thought would be in the 25-point range to start.

Then there's the matter of the salary cap, where the Oilers start to save some space here, keeping themselves in the conversation for some key free agents, namely Milan Lucic.  The Oilers now have about $14.7 million left to fill three voids, including a back-up goalie, so they should be players this Summer.  The Devils don't mind taking on a little bit more of a cap hit, as their projections are still well below the cap floor today.