Taylor Hall is happy to be in Carolina and so should the Chicago Blackhawks

Taylor Hall was a late scratch, so he did not get a chance to show up his former team last night.

However, Hall did have some parting words toward the Chicago Blackhawks before the Hurricanes' victory. Needless to say, he was not happy with his ice time when he was with the Hawks.

Taylor Hall: "My playing time in Chicago, for whatever reason, was not where I would have liked it to be. So I was happy to be traded, and I was happy to come to a really good team."
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) January 30, 2025

It is an interesting tune for Hall to have, considering that just a few weeks ago, he was still hoping to get a contract extension from the Blackhawks.

Taylor Hall believes he will likely be traded. He would be open to signing an extension but has “a feeling that’s not really in the cards.”

“I came into this year wanting to be a Blackhawk for years to come. I don’t know if that’s going to be the case anymore.”
— Ben Pope (@BenPopeCST) January 15, 2025

Although Hall may have hoped the Hawks would be the only team still willing to pay him his current salary. However, he is not playing at a level that would earn him another contract worth $6 million a year. Maybe he was upset because the Hawks front office knew it.

Hall can gloat about getting the chance to chase a Stanley Cup, but it is an interesting attitude switch when he was hoping to stay with the Hawks. Maybe he is upset that the Blackhawks viewed his value correctly instead of how he perceived his worth.

To the Hawks, he was just getting in the way of younger players' development. Hall still views himself as a player capable of winning the Hart Trophy when those days are over.

“They're on a different timeline than my career is, right? So I get it. I understand it. I wanted to play more. I'm definitely a better player than the amount I was playing. But you also understand where they're coming from.”

—Taylor Hall on the Blackhawks trading him pic.twitter.com/XKjrpHZAMk
— Phillip Thompson (@_phil_thompson) January 30, 2025

When you mix those two elements, it is good that he is no longer on the roster.

That is why the Blackhawks should be happy that Hall is happy to be in Carolina.

While some think the Blackhawks got fleeced in the deal, they did make out with another draft pick that projects to be in the top 75.

That draft pick is more important than making sure Taylor Hall feels better about his ice time. He can claim things were going well with Ryan Donato and him on the same line, but getting Landon Slaggert and Frank Nazar precious NHL development ice time is way more important to the Hawks' long-term future.

Now the Hawks do not have to worry about Hall's feelings and balancing his ice time with the time of younger prospects vital to the club's future.

The intention here is not to dump on Hall. He is on a contender now and has every right to enjoy being valued again. At the same time, it is also silly for him to hammer that point home when he was campaigning to stay in Chicago.

It is an interesting tune for Hall to have, considering that just a few weeks ago, he was still hoping to get a contract extension from the Blackhawks.

That is why the Blackhawks should be happy that Hall is happy to be in Carolina.

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