Seven years ago, Taylor Hall and Adam Henrique made up arguably the most dangerous combo in junior hockey.
Now, they’re looking to reprise that success at the NHL level.
“We spent three years together in junior. We had some really good times in Windsor, playing there,” Hall said of his time with the OHL’s Spitfires, per NJ.com. “And he’s a great guy, and one of the first guys to text me after this deal went public.”
Back in 2009, Henrique and Hall finished as the second- and fourth-leader scorers at the Memorial Cup, combining for 17 points in six games to help the Spits capture the title.
Upon graduating to the NHL -- Hall the first overall pick in 2010, Henrique 82nd overall in ’08 -- the two didn’t see much of each other. Hall was in Edmonton, Henrique in New Jersey, and there was little thought the two would wind up playing on the same team.
Until this week, that is.
Edmonton and New Jersey pulled off a blockbuster on Wednesday, sending Hall to the Devils in exchange for d-man Adam Larsson. The immediate assumption is that Hall and Henrique would be placed on the same line together, possibly with 30-goal man Kyle Palmieri playing the alternate wing.
If that happens, the Devils’ top line would be plenty of fun to watch. Henrique also found the back of the net 30 times last year, and has been a pretty consistent scorer since turning pro six years ago.
The domino effect would also be pronounced. New Jersey could shift another quality scorer, Mike Cammalleri, into a second line role where he could (possibly) be paired up with prized center prospect Pavel Zacha, the sixth overall pick in 2015.
So needless to say, exciting times for the Devils.