(Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Despite being a very valuable NHL player, Taylor Hall has certainly seen his share of travel around the league. 

That semi-annual tradition continued this offseason, when the Boston Bruins packaged him with Nick Foligno in a salary dump move to the Chicago Blackhawks.

Chicago, the winners of this year’s draft lottery, drafted the unanimous best rated talent in the draft, Connor Bedard. 

With this trade, Chicago will be surrounding their first overall pick with some talent, while also providing Bedard with someone who knows what it is like to be in his position. Hall himself was a first overall pick by the Edmonton Oilers back in 2010. 

Bedard however will be far from the first number one overall pick that Hall has played with. In fact, Bedard will be the SEVENTH first overall pick entering his rookie season Taylor Hall has played with during his 13 year NHL career. 

Let’s take a quick look and see who each pick was, and how things went. Players are in order of when Hall played with each person. 

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton

Hall’s sophomore season with Edmonton paired him with another first overall pick joining the Oilers in Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. 

Nugent-Hopkins, while perhaps not the most dynamic first overall pick in recent memory, had a very solid rookie season in Edmonton. In 62 games he tallied 52 points, which ranked third on the Oilers that season. Ahead of him by just one point was Hall, who had 53 in 61 games played. 

Despite the personal success of both Hall and Nugent-Hopkins that year, the Oilers struggled, putting together just 32 wins that season in the midst of a multi-year run of hardship that some could dub “the oil change.”

The 32 wins placed them 5th in the Northwest Division, which at the time was last place, as the NHL was still using six divisions in 2011-12. 

Nugent-Hopkins would go on to have a very successful NHL career, including quietly putting together a 104 point season, far and away the best of his career. 

Nail Yakupov, Edmonton

Hall’s third season in the league saw him become teammates with yet another first overall pick for the Oilers. Joining the team was Nail Yakopov, whose rookie season would be abbreviated by the NHL’s 2012-13 lockout. 

In 48 games that season, Yakupov tallied 31 points, which ended up being the second best of his career. Yakupov’s 31 points were 4th on Edmonton’s roster that year, a roster that was led by Hall, who recorded 50 points for the team. 

Despite the help of three straight first overall talents, the Oilers could not make much of a jump in the standings. They finished 3rd in the Northwest Division that year, but were still not particularly close to a playoff spot. 

Yakupov’s early success with the Oilers would not be something he could replicate, and after the 2015-16 season, his time in Edmonton was over. Two years later, the same could be said for his NHL career. 

Connor McDavid, Edmonton

Not only is Bedard not the first top pick to play with Hall, he’s not even the first top pick named Connor to play with him. 

People might forget that Hall and McDavid were once teammates, for one season in 2015-16. The Oilers had a two year hiatus before they found themselves once again the holders of the first overall pick. 

I think we’re all well aware of how well McDavid’s career has gone. Even though he may not have the playoff resume to support him yet, his personal numbers are off the charts. 

In his rookie season in Edmonton, McDavid scored 48 points, which may not look like typical McDavid numbers, but he missed significant time that season. Injuries hampered him to just 45 games in his rookie year, which likely cost him his chance to win the Calder Trophy as the league’s best rookie that season. 

As for Hall, he once again led the Oilers in scoring, with 65 points in a full 82 games. Edmonton finished 7th in the Pacific Division that season, but the following year would make a surprise run to the second round, backstopped by McDavid. 

Nico Hischier, New Jersey

After McDavid’s rookie season, Hall would be traded to New Jersey in that infamous one-for-one deal that sent Adam Larsson back to Edmonton. 

After a 28 win season in 2016-17, the Devils won the draft lottery, and selected Nico Hischier with their first overall pick. 

The current captain of the Devils, Hischier’s NHL career got off to a solid start, tallying 52 points in a full 82 games during his rookie season. His 52 points were second on the team. 

Hall, meanwhile, far and away led New Jersey with 92 points. The performances of both him and Hischier led the Devils to the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs. But their run would end rather quickly, losing in 5 games in the opening round to the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

Since then, Hischier’s career has taken off and his value has skyrocketed on a Devils team that looks dangerous for the next several years. 

Jack Hughes, New Jersey

New Jersey’s 2017-18 run did not bring future success, as the Devils plummeted back down in the standings. After finishing last place in the Metropolitan Division in 2018-19, New Jersey won the draft lottery for the second time in three seasons. 

With their 2019 first overall pick, the Devils drafted Jack Hughes. 

Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo

Remember when Taylor Hall was a Buffalo Sabre? That was weird. 

Hall spent less than one season as a Sabre, after he had shocked the hockey world by signing a one-year deal in Buffalo when he was a coveted free agent in 2020. 

Dahlin, the only first overall pick defenseman that Hall has played with, has been a standout defenseman in Buffalo for several years now. Drafted first overall back in 2018, while Hall was still in New Jersey, Dahlin’s presence on the blueline was much needed for the Sabres, and he also added 44 points for Buffalo from the backend during his rookie season. 

Hall, during his short stay in Buffalo, had a miserable time. Hall could only muster just 2 goals and 19 points in his 37 games as a Sabre. At the deadline during the 2020-21 season, Hall was flipped to the Boston Bruins, being able to acquire Anders Bjork and a second round pick in the deal. 

Dahlin in 2020-21, which was his third in the NHL, recorded 23 points and was a -36, both of which were by far the worst marks of his career. 

In defense of both Hall and Dahlin, however, the entire 2020-21 Sabres campaign was miserable. The team’s season was marred by a midseason coaching change and an EIGHTEEN game losing streak. 

Connor Bedard, Chicago

While no one knows for sure just how good Bedard could be in the NHL, his arrival is certain to boost spirits in Chicago, and perhaps speed up the rebuild that the Blackhawks find themselves in. But as with any first overall pick no matter how good they are, he can’t do everything for a team all by himself.

Hall, who had 111 points over his 158 games as a Bruin, has two years left on his current contract. Whether he plays out those two seasons in Chicago, or he finds himself in the trade market again as the Blackhawks continue to build up assets is yet to be seen.