Right now, Arizona Coyotes fans are in celebration mode after nabbing the hottest piece of trade bait on the market so far this season. Arizona gave up a big haul of draft picks and prospects to get Taylor Hall from the New Jersey Devils, but the team's management insists it's worth it as they will try to re-sign Hall at the end of the season. One analyst believes they will have a lot of competition, namely from Lou Lamoriello of the New York Islanders. Jim Matheson, who covers the NHL for the Edmonton Journal, says he expects Lamoriello to go "all out" to add Hall to the Islanders roster.
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It would be interesting to see a reunion of Hall and Jordan Eberle, who were both drafted by, and played for, the Edmonton Oilers. The Islanders have about $6 million in unused cap space this season. However, Mathew Barzal will be a restricted free agent come July 1st, while goaltender Thomas Greiss will become an unrestricted free agent. Both will be commanding big raises to remain on Long Island. On top of that, Anthony Beauvillier and Michael Dal Colle will become RFAs with arbitration rights at the end of 2020-21, while Casey Cizikas will become an unrestricted free agent. Simply put, the Islanders can make a run at signing Hall, but a long-term contract will most certainly mean giving up other players in the future.
Hall is in the final year of a seven-year deal that paid him $6 million per season. He'll be 28 when he hits the open market, meaning he should still has several years of good hockey left. It's a safe bet his next contract will be for far more than his current one and there are likely to be plenty of suitors, with or without Lamoriello in the mix.
