Hurricanes sign Taylor Hall to three-year extension

“Taylor has proven to be an outstanding fit for our team, and we are thrilled that he is excited to make Raleigh his home for another three seasons,” general manager Eric Tulsky said in a statement. “He’s been a solid veteran presence in the locker room and a difference maker on the ice.”

Hall has fit well in Carolina since the team acquired him from the Blackhawks in January’s blockbuster three-way deal with the Avalanche. While the 2010 first overall pick isn’t the MVP threat he was in his prime, he’s settled in as a capable middle-six scorer in his twilight years. He scored 9-9–18 in 31 regular-season games after arriving in Raleigh-Durham, a 24-goal, 48-point pace over an 82-game schedule.

While a three-year term may carry some risk for a player who’ll be 36 years old upon expiry, it’s a cost-effective commitment that maintains the Hurricanes’ immense salary cap flexibility next season. Hall’s extension still leaves them with $32.06MM in projected cap space for 2025-26 with just five roster spots to fill, per PuckPedia. With no notable restricted free agents to re-sign, this is a highly team-friendly deal to allow Carolina to retain a reliable middle-six scorer and go big-game hunting in earnest over the summer.

It’s no surprise to see Hall prioritize term over money in extension talks. He’s been traded twice in the past three seasons after signing a four-year, $24MM contract with the Bruins in 2021. After potting 61 points in 81 games for Boston in the first year of the deal, his most since his Hart Trophy campaign with the Devils in 2017-18, he managed 36 points in 61 contests in 2022-23 and was traded to Chicago in a cap-clearing move the following summer. Knee surgery then limited Hall to just 10 appearances for the Hawks in 2023-24 before scoring 24 points in 46 games for Chicago this season, before the move to the Hurricanes.

While he takes a 47% pay cut per year, Hall avoids his first trip to unrestricted free agency in five years the morning after Carolina became the first team to advance to the second round with a come-from-behind double overtime win over the Devils in Game 5. The 6’1″, 210-lb forward had a goal and two assists with a minus-one rating in the series while averaging 15:56 per game.

For the organization, retaining their top pending UFA forward well in advance of the market opening is an important development after seeing their scoring depth gutted by free-agent departures last summer. This time around, Tulsky won’t face the same fate while also having nearly unprecedented flexibility among playoff contenders to add to his roster on the open market.

It’s a deal the Canes and Hall have been working on essentially since his acquisition. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet and Andy Strickland of FanDuel Sports Network both said in February that they were discussing an extension.

Image courtesy of David Kirouac-Imagn Images.