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Oilers Send Taylor Hall to Devils for Adam Larsson

The Taylor Hall era in Edmonton is over. The Oilers traded the former first overall pick to New Jersey for defenceman Adam Larsson.
Photo by Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

The Edmonton Oilers have traded winger Taylor Hall to the New Jersey Devils for defenceman Adam Larsson in what's the biggest blockbuster deal of the young offseason so far.

The Oilers have been in desperate need of a top-end defenceman for some time now, and with their deep pool of forwards, it was only a matter of time until general manager Peter Chiarelli made a move.

Hall, the Oilers' first overall pick in the 2010 entry draft, was seen as a key piece in the rebuild in Edmonton. The 24-year-old left winger has been Edmonton's best player in recent years, scoring 132 goals and 328 points since joining the team in 2010. He's coming off a 65-point season in which he scored a team-high 26 goals. Hall has four years remaining on his contract with a cap hit of $6 million per season.

Larsson, the 23-year-old defenceman from Sweden, has played his entire NHL career in New Jersey since being selected fourth overall by the Devils in 2011. In 274 NHL games, Larsson has put up 69 points and 155 penalty minutes for a mediocre Devils team. Larsson will earn an average of $4.1 million for the next five years, and has a limited no trade clause that kicks in during the 2018-19 season.

The deal sets the price for right-handed shooting defensemen, and it is a high one. The trade is widely being viewed as highway robbery for the Devils.