Adam Hall was a solid fourth-line center on the Flyers for the last year (plus 10 games the year prior), but he won’t be back next year. That was probably a given since he hadn’t been signed yet and it’s now August, but a report over the weekend indicate that Hall will play in Switzerland next season.
As we wrote in our season review of Hall back in May, he was a perfect fourth-liner: he won faceoffs consistently, especially when you needed them at crucial times in the defensive zone, played about 10 minutes a night, was still a solid player despite being saddled with crappy linemates, and he did it for a mere $600,000. He was also a key piece of the Flyers penalty kill, which was a truly elite group last year.
Despite that, it’s not a shock that Hall won’t be coming back. Again from our season review:
If the Flyers can get another year of Adam Hall for $600K, we’d all be ecstatic.
Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. At this point, the Flyers’ logjam at center is pretty well documented. There’s the possibility that the Flyers carry all of Giroux, Schenn, Lecavalier, Couturier and Laughton on their opening night roster.
There’s just no room for him here, which is a shame for a guy that finally seemed to find some consistency with the Flyers after years of bouncing around the league. Best of luck to Hall in Switzerland.
