Taylor Hall has zero playoff points.
Because he’s not in the playoffs.
Because he plays in New Jersey.
Because he got traded.
Remember?
No, really…. I’m asking because I’m pretty sure a bunch of Oiler fans don’t remember that he’s no longer on this team, what with the way they incessantly talk about him. Hall played here for 6 years and was often one of few bright spots in an otherwise dismal time. He got traded on June 29 (something which has been covered ad nauseam on this site, and in the mainstream media, and everywhere in between), and was pretty upset that he was forced out.
Taylor Hall played the first part of what should be a pretty successful career with the Oilers. He was a good soldier when the team needed him to be and he carried the team on his back for at least two full seasons. He wasn’t responsible for the team losing any more than Adam Larsson is responsible for the team winning. A number of factors are at play here, and while the false equivalency narrative is easy, it’s also lazy. What we know is this: The Oilers traded Hall for Adam Larsson, signed Milan Lucic and have experienced success on the heels of those moves. I hate to break it to you, but Hall’s gone. He’s never coming back. My own feelings about him are well-documented, and even I’m not bringing this up at every opportunity.
Seriously you guys. Let it go. https://t.co/xkUa2JWRha
— Megan – Salty AF (@mig14) April 27, 2017
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He was angry on trade day, and in interviews at the beginning of the season his feelings were solidly on his sleeve. I don’t blame him one bit for that emotional response, just like I don’t blame him for saying that he wouldn’t be cheering for the Oilers in the playoffs because
“It’s a weird dynamic. You’re happy for your friends that they’re doing well and they’re going to experience the playoffs. But you can’t help but be a bit jealous.”
That’s the response of someone who’s been asked about this one too many times and who is just absolutely done with everything.
There’s a disturbing trend among Edmonton mainstream media to repeatedly bring up the trade, as if there’s absolutely nothing else to talk about. Without Twitter, it would just be an echo chamber, where guys like Spec and Matty and Leavins would just spout their nonsense and no one would read it because it’s trash. Instead, we see the links to the articles and we feel like we need to respond right away. (Hint: we don’t)
This team is in the playoffs for the first time in forever (Connor was 9 YEARS OLD the last time the Oilers were in the playoffs) and they just won Game 1 of Round 2 and we are STILL sniping about Taylor Hall. Fans take cues from the media, and if those closest to the team are still talking about it, of course the fans are going to keep talking. This morning, Mark Spector published a piece about it and accompanied it with this tweet and I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt.
Question: Who has more playoff goals, Larsson or Hall?
Answer: Your team has to make the playoffs for you to score a playoff goal. https://t.co/FjdAjKc7To— Mark Spector (@SportsnetSpec) April 27, 2017
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(In case you don’t want to read that article, know that Spec actually referenced “200 hockey men” as sources for his opinion. That sound you hear is the sigh I just heaved.)
The narrative around Hall’s tenure and departure has been changing since June 29, but the constant is the fixation on his success (or lack thereof) in New Jersey. For some reason, there’s a cadre of Oiler fans who can’t let sleeping dogs lie and just let it go (even though they’re the same people who implored those of us who were upset about the trade to ‘let it go’ almost as soon as it happened).
So imagine my surprise (narrator: she was not, in fact, surprised) when last night, on the heels of the Oilers first Round 2 game (and victory) in 11 years, Oilers twitter was ablaze with things like “Adam Larsson has more goals in the playoffs than Taylor Hall” and “Does anyone feel sorry for Hall? I don’t.”
Like Wyshynski (among a bunch of other people), I don’t get it.
Obsession in EDM with Taylor Hall is so bat-shit. Guy wanted nothing more in life than to be a part of what’s happening this season with Oil
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) April 7, 2017
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Taylor Hall is the boyfriend you can’t get over because even though you made excuses for why you broke up with him, you know deep down that he’s the best you’ve ever had and the guy you replaced him with is good, but not great. There’s lots of fond memories, and maybe a little regret about the breakup because you know in your soul you made a mistake and no amount of justifying things will make it better. The fact of the matter is that you broke up with him; he wanted to be with you forever and instead of letting him come to grips with no longer being part of your life, you keep reminding him of how much better you are without him. In doing so, however, you draw attention to your lingering affection for him. It hurt your feelings when he said he wasn’t going to pay attention to you anymore, because all you want is for him to look your way. He might actually miss you but he’s never going to admit it, especially not when you constantly drag his name through the mud and compare him to other, lesser, partners you’ve had.
Taylor Hall deserves better from this fan base, one that he was so disappoint
ed to leave. He deserves the courtesy of us letting him move on. We can miss him (or not), but we don’t need to talk about it all the time.
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