Taylor Hall turned his career around with the Boston Bruins last season after the Original Six franchise acquired him from the Buffalo Sabres right before the April 12 trade deadline.
Hall looked like his old self wearing the spoked-B, tallying 14 points (eight goals, six assists) in 16 games to close out the regular season. Much of that success came alongside David Krejci, who centered Boston's second line with Hall and Craig Smith on the wing.
Unfortunately for the Bruins, Krejci decided to leave the franchise in free agency and return to the Czech Republic to finish his hockey career. As a result, the B's are without an ideal No. 2 center entering the 2021-22 campaign.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Break up the McAvoy-Grzelcyk pairing? There are pros and cons
That said, Hall remains confident that both he and Smith will find success with whoever ends up playing center on their line.
"It doesn't really change my preparation for the year," Hall told reporters during a Zoom call Friday. "My job is to come in and play as well as I can. Whatever line I'm slotted in, hopefully I can drive that line like I have in the past. Whoever the centerman is, I imagine I'll play with Smitty on the right side. I think that we can work with anyone.
"In signing here, I never had a guarantee that Krejci was gonna be back. I just wanted to play for this team and help this team win a Stanley Cup hopefully at the end of the day. Whatever I have to do to contribute to that is what I'll do. I'm sure Smitty and whoever we're playing with feels the same."
Boston Bruins
Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy has a couple options in deciding who will play second-line center, but all signs point toward Charlie Coyle getting the first crack at the role.
Coyle and Hall played just 10 minutes together at 5-on-5 last season, so it will be important for these two players, plus Smith, to build more chemistry during training camp and the preseason before the puck drops for the regular season Oct. 16.