After bouncing around the NHL for over a decade, Taylor Hall may have finally found a place to call home. The former Hart Trophy winner has signed a three-year, $9.5 million contract extension with the Carolina Hurricanes, the team announced Wednesday. The deal carries an annual cap hit of $3.167 million and gives Hall, now 33, some much-needed stability as he enters the later stages of his career.
A Long Road Through the NHL
To say Hall has been well-travelled would be an understatement. Since being selected first overall by the Edmonton Oilers in 2010, he’s now played for seven different NHL teams. Injuries slowed his early years in Edmonton, and after six seasons, he was dealt to the New Jersey Devils in 2016.
That trade sparked the best season of Hall’s career. In 2018, he scored 93 points (39 goals, 54 assists) and earned the Hart Trophy as league MVP. However, New Jersey couldn’t lock him into a long-term deal, and he was traded to the Arizona Coyotes as a rental player.
His next stop was with the Buffalo Sabres, where he signed a one-year, $8 million deal to play under former Oilers coach Ralph Krueger. But Hall’s time in Buffalo was forgettable—he scored just two goals in 37 games before being moved to the Boston Bruins.
In Boston, Hall seemed to regain his form. He signed a four-year, $24 million contract and had two strong seasons before the Bruins needed cap space and traded him to the Chicago Blackhawks. Chicago hoped he’d mentor 2023 No. 1 pick Connor Bedard, but a knee injury cut Hall’s season short after only 10 games.
Carolina Finds Value in Hall
Hall entered the final year of his contract in 2024, and though he stayed mostly healthy, his role in Chicago was inconsistent. Eventually, he became part of the three-team trade that landed Mikko Rantanen in Carolina, with Hall coming in as a salary-balanced piece.
Despite being considered an “ancillary move” in that deal, Hall quickly made a mark in Carolina, scoring 18 points in 31 regular-season games and adding three points in five playoff games, helping the Hurricanes defeat the New Jersey Devils, one of his former clubs.
Speaking on a media call after signing the deal, Hall said, “(Getting term was a) big part of that, just moving around, and now that I have a family, it’s important to be somewhere where I’m comfortable. This team, right from the moment I got here, made me feel comfortable.”
GM Eric Tulsky Gets It Done
Carolina GM Eric Tulsky said the team and Hall’s agent, Darren Ferris, were on the same page from the start. “We’ve been talking since the day of the trade,” Tulsky said. “I don’t think either of us ever doubted that it would get done.”
Unlike Rantanen, who ended up being flipped to the Dallas Stars, Hall seemed eager to commit to the Hurricanes. That sense of mutual interest helped make the deal relatively smooth.
Taylor Hall’s NHL journey has been full of ups and downs—injuries, trades, and changing roles. But in Carolina, he may have finally found the right mix of opportunity, comfort, and team culture. For the Hurricanes, securing a former MVP with plenty of gas still in the tank for a manageable cap hit could turn out to be one of the savviest signings of the offseason.
With Hall now locked in and contributing, the Hurricanes have another proven forward to help push their playoff ambitions forward.
