I woke up this morning to see Oilers Twitter blazing as hard as it does when something controversial has happened and to my non-surprise it was regarding Taylor Hall again. This time former heavyweight champion of the NHL and Oilers alumni Georges Laraque was teeing off on Hall in a radio interview with CHOI Radio X 98.1 host Alex Lablond.
“Hall had problems off the ice, and went to rehab during the summer of his trade (2016),”
“When he got to rehab, word got out across the NHL that the Oilers were looking to move him because of it. It reminds us of the Zack Kassian case. When everyone in the league knows the player’s dirt, it’s normal that the player’s value is going to drop.”
“He absolutely had to leave Edmonton, no question.” (source)
This should hit the anti-Chiarelli crowd like a ton of bricks but I’m betting it doesn’t. I reckon they’ll all say they knew it and since it didn’t affect his GF% or his pts/60 that it wasn’t that big a deal and that by trading the star LWer at his lowest value, Chiarelli has done even worse in their eyes.
They’ll say that Laraque isn’t a credible source or that Hall didn’t need a fresh start or Laraque is being an asshole for bringing this up… And yeah, he might be playing the part of the heel in this story but he’s playing a different game now. The media game and if radio stations weren’t on board with what he said in the past or were offended by it or even felt there was the slightest risk bringing him on their stations to speak, he wouldn’t be there doing it.
If he wrote a book on the things that he’s seen or heard that isn’t supposed to be in the public eye, everyone would buy it. Everyone.
Funny you say that…. I am in Kelowna and the fellas at the sports memeorobilia show where very specific with this same issue of Hall. Went as far as to say that was the reason he was shipped out. I don't generally belive this stuff, but different sources same story.
— Marcus Boutilier (@SportMajor) March 24, 2018
Hall had to go because it was the best thing for the player. The environment was toxic for him. His peers had stopped supporting him on and off of the ice. He was going down a dark path and maybe we should give Peter Chiarelli some credit for giving him a new lease on life.
Every season that passes by we learn a bit more about the trade. We learn that more than likely it had very little to do with the on-ice portion of his game. Klefbom, Ference, Laraque, and Belanger have all had their crack at Taylor Hall since he was moved on from and, to me at least, this is something I haven’t seen before. When’s the last time a player has garnered so much media attention from former teammates talking about him. Hall must’ve done something to deserve it because that’s not how the hockey fraternity works.
Now, I’m not going to shit on a player because he likes to “have a good time” when he’s out. Hell, I’ve only heard the stories of the dynasty Oilers and those pale in comparison to what any of Oiler has tried to do since then. Everybody is free to do what they like as long as they don’t affect their daily lives or the daily lives of others negatively.
And I have to applaud the players that take the necessary steps to get help because that’s not an easy thing to do for anyone be it a professional athlete or the plumber next door.
I think there some couple of things that stand out for me though. Just casual observations.
- One year living with Hall was enough for McDavid and the Oilers I’m thinking. Not that Connor was some sort of spy or anything but he wants to win at all costs and if he sees a weak link, he’s not afraid to voice his concern. Don’t believe me? Read Bob McKenzie’s latest book where he tells the story of when Connor’s dad was coaching Connor and there were a couple of kids on the bench not quite into the game as they should be. You wanna talk about intense?
- Eberle and Hall have been traded but not Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Off-ice habits have anything to do with this?
- Why aren’t NHL teams doing better to protect their players? Performance enhancing drugs are banned but performance de-enhancing drugs are not? If a drug is illegal in real life, shouldn’t it be tested for by sports teams?
We don’t know every detail that goes into a trade in the NHL. In fact, I’d go as far as to say we know about 10% of what really goes on. The Larsson/Hall trade is no different.
Hall could’ve been a legend for the Edmonton Oilers but his ego got in the way and that’s too bad for him. I’m glad he’s finding his path in New Jersey but I still hope they miss the playoffs because of those folks out there that say they are fans of the Oilers but hate the team for moving him.
Should Laraque have shared the story? I leave that up to you.
If this is true, it won’t change the popular narrative. Many have already commented on Hall’s character (Belanger, Klefbom, Ference, etc). He was a selfish, arrogant hockey player til his Coach sat him down over the summer & told him to grow up. Too bad he didn’t mature earlier. https://t.co/pebURjQA4k
— Ryan Robinson (@BlogManRy) March 24, 2018
We’ve got a new shirt design available at the Beer League Heroes Teepublic Shop and I understand that Oilersnation did something like this before so I was hesitant to do it in the first place but I was told they only made it available for one day and to me that’s a shame because of the moment captured being so iconic. Between McDavid and Matthews openly mocking the refs within days of each other, they basically are responsible for the league changing how video reviews are done.
I hope you like the design and for the next 3 days it is on sale for 30% off!
