Devils’ Hall takes home Hart Trophy as league’s MVP
He beats out Avalanche’s MacKinnon in a tight vote
Taylor Hall doesn’t love public speaking, and the New Jersey Devils forward’s nervousness grew while the NHL Awards show moved along.
But after Hall and the hockey world watched moving tributes to the Humboldt Broncos and the victims of two mass shootings, he was ready to accept the Hart Trophy with the proper perspective.
“It’s not all about you,” Hall said. “It’s not all about winning awards. It’s about enjoying life and doing what you love.”
Hall was named the NHL’s most valuable player Wednesday in Las Vegas, becoming the first New Jersey player to win the award after edging Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon in a close vote.
The hometown Vegas Golden Knights also went home with four trophies in recognition of their incredible expansion season from a celebratory and occasionally somber evening at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.
Hall, who finished sixth in the league with 93 points, beat out fellow first-time Hart finalists MacKinnon and Anze Kopitar of Los Angeles. Hall got 72 firstplace votes and 1,264 total points in the voting, while MacKinnon got 60 firstplace votes and 1,194 points.
Hall likely got the nod over two worthy contenders because of the way he carried the Devils offensively while they rebounded from a last-place finish in the Eastern Conference and reached the playoffs for the first time in five years. Hall put together a 26-game points streak during the season, and he finished with 41 more points than rookie Nico Hischier, New Jersey’s second-leading scorer.
“If there is one thing I’m proud of, it’s to be the first Devil to win MVP,” Hall said. “At the start of the season, people wrote us off. People have wrote me off, and it feels pretty good standing up here now.”
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