Critical health update from Chicago's Taylor Hall

One of the worst teams in the NHL last season, the Chicago Blackhawks certainly weren't aided by the fact that veteran forward Taylor Hall missed all but 10 games after undergoing ACL surgery.

However, the good news is that the former No. 1 overall pick is on track to be healthy and participate in Training Camp along with being ready for the upcoming year and play alongside the No. 1 overall 2023 pick in teammate Connor Bedard.

“I’m really confident I’ll be a solid contributor for the Blackhawks this year,” Hall said. “What makes me say that is the hockey I’ve played and the preparation I’ve done this summer. When I get on the ice with some really good NHL players here in Ontario, I know I can be a difference-maker for our team.

“As you get older, you do get better at preparing, and you know your body better. I feel like that year off allowed me to be more mentally fresh, and hopefully I can use that this coming season. Not a lot of players get three-quarters of a year off after playing 14 seasons, so I intend to come back hungry.”

The Blackhawks are scheduled to open their preseason schedule on September 25 with a matchup against their former Western Conference rival Red Wings.

“My full clearance will come when I get back to Chicago and I’m able to show [the Hawks] that I handle contact, which won’t be a problem — I’ve been introducing that slowly this summer,” Hall said. “It’s more of a contact thing, and they want to do that in a controlled setting. It’s hard to do that when they don’t have eyes on me every day.”

A former Hart Trophy winner with the Devils, Hall has played in a total of 832 career NHL games, scoring 266 goals with 431 assists. And he's looking to improve his own personal goal total and even has a specific number in mind.

“I would love to score a few more goals this year than in the past,” Hall said. “I’m usually good for 20 every year, but to get up near 30, that would be a lot of fun for me at this age. That’s a little bit of a goal of mine — to not only shoot the puck more but [also] to get in better spots where I’m taking one-timers more, shooting off the pass more and just adding that back into my game.”

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