Quote:
Originally Posted by Tinordi
I have a soft spot for Hall. Maybe it's because he's from Calgary. But it's pretty quizzical to suggest that Hall doesn't use his teammates when he consistently gets more assists than goals. He's the best playmaker on that team and by a fair margin. RNH might be better than Hall someday but he isn't now.
Sure he's a player with warts and isn't close to being a top five player right now but over the past 3 seasons he's been in the top ten in PPG in the league. That's hardly chopped liver.
The LEAST of the Oilers' concerns are with Hall. As far as I'm concerned he's basically panned out and could still be a consistent 90 point player if he stays uninjured.
The big problem with the Oilers is relatively simple. Besides the number 1 picks they haven't turned anything resembling a roster mainstay with their later round picks. Because they can't build depth through free agency because nobody wants to play there, they have to build their depth through the draft and it's failed. In a nut shell that's the problem.
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The question isn't whether Hall can put up points, it's whether Hall can put up points at the same time as he is contributing to wins, playing meaningful minutes.
The measure of a player is how many points they put up relative to how many are scored on them in the same time frame. Can hall be a 75 point player while also contributing defensively? I'm not convinced. It's not impossible, but I've seen lots of guys in the NHL put up points where winning was a secondary concern.
I agree that Hall is the least of their problems, but if he can't wrap his head around being a 3 zone player who makes smart decisions with the puck, he's not going to be a solution either.