With Taylor Hall suffering a concussion as the season wound down, many suggested that he be shut down for the season to prevent any further injury. Today, those people got their wish, but in an unlikely manner.
The Edmonton Oilers have announced that Taylor Hall will not return this season; instead he’ll have surgery on his left shoulder.
Here’s what the Oilers’ official Twitter feed had to say, along with the prognosis directly from general manager Steve Tambellini:
Hall (labral shoulder surgery) will not return to the #Oilers lineup this season, according to GM Tambellini
"Recovery time will be between five and six months, so our hope is that Taylor will be ready for the start of next season." – Tambellini
Going for a midpoint between five and six months puts Hall’s return at some point early in September, likely just prior to the start of training camp.
For those wondering when this injury occurred, the Oilers’ feed also included a quote from Hall on the length of time since the injury occurred:
"Four years now … I injured it in junior and it’s been wearing away." – Taylor Hall when asked when he first injured his shoulder
It seems highly plausible that the Ryan Wilson hit shown above – a hit that cost Hall seven games back in December – exacerbated the situation.
Naturally, the question now will turn to why Hall was allowed to play this year with an injury, but I’m not at all sure that things are so clear-cut. The simple fact of the matter is that NHL players play through pain, and they play through injury. To know whether Hall’s specific injury should have been dealt with via surgery immediately, one would need to know what the risk of injuring it worse was. We don’t have that information. Without that information, it seems only fair to assume that the Oilers were doing what every other team does whenever possible: delaying surgery until the off-season. At this point, I’m not close to ready to criticize the medical staff; there simply isn’t enough information here to have an opinion one way or the other.
And while this isn’t good news, it could be far worse. Hall’s getting a nagging problem looked at, and he should be ready to return to the Oilers next season. This will cost him his chance to represent Canada at the World Championships, but it’s probably the best decision.
Related Posts at Oilers Nation
- Hall out again? (on this same, nagging, injury)
- Did the Oilers ignore NHL concussion rules when they allowed Theo Peckham to continue playing?
- Did the Oilers have bad injury luck last year?
- Taylor Hall: The silver lining
- The durable and the injury-prone
ugggh.
This isn’t the FIST time that Hall’s had injury problems…starting to get concerned
EDIT: DAMN IT! I was late to the party…
you can look at this one of 2 ways IMO..
1) the taylor hall we’ve seen since junior has been damaged goods and we could see next year what a 100% healthy Hall actually looks like (as in he could get better once 100% healthy)
or
2) Hall has been in the NHL for 2 seasons and has had both of them cut short, does he just need to get stronger or will Hall’s reckless style force this kind of thing to happen every year?
Please Lord, let there be another work stoppage, please let there be another work stoppage.
Amen.
NO!
NHL is must!
Baseball players blow out elbows and fans worry saying they are done, but now adays come back stronger. Shoulder is similar, once tweaked it needs work, he should be even stronger nxt season
First Souray, then Hemsky, then Hall, then Nuge. All shoulder injuries, all rushed back. Here’s an exerpt from a sportsnet article on Sheldon Souray in April 2010:
His experience in Edmonton began on the wrong foot for Souray when he arrived at his first training camp nursing a shoulder injury.
“I wasn’t even ready to play when I came here, but it was like, ‘We signed you, you go out and play.’ I hadn’t been cleared to play yet, but I was being questioned by the organization:‘When are you going to be able to play?’
“I go out, play six games, and I get hurt.”
Souray said it wasn’t the training staff applying the pressure; it was “management.”
He fought Vancouver’s Byron Ritchie in Game 6 of the 2007-08 season and re-injured his shoulder, missing the next 55 games.
“I got challenged by management on the very first day of my first training camp. The very first day,” he said. “They said, ‘When are you going to play?’ I said, ‘I have a six month (shoulder) injury and I’m at five months.’ But I played.
“I’ve had the experience of playing in great organizations (in New Jersey and Montreal), and experienced a vastly different approach to things like that. I was a captain in Montreal. I never had my character questioned there, or in New Jersey. I feel that’s all I’ve had since I’ve been here.’”
wow wow wow just hold on there a sec………………………………………………you forgot Horcoff in the list of shoulder surgeries. I’m sorry people can say what they want but you look at the list and you have to say WTF. No team has an injury history like this and one problem I’m having is its older and younger players. Hurt it in Junior, almost sounds like something Tambo told him to say so that the team doesn’t take more heat on the matter. Somethings not right, and how does this reflect on Katz. I mean the guy made his millions and billions based on the ability to heal people and provide health services sort of speak and the team since he bought it has been a huge bandaid that won’t heal.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there was another injury before the end of the season, Hey Petry needs a shoulder worked on????
Bite your tongue, man. We can afford to lose a forward or two… but not any D. Please no more D-man injuries.
Couldn’t agree more but the team is putting together a pretty lengthy track record it would seem. Seriously though if I was a UFA player looking to sign somewhere and I saw an injury history like this for the team. There is probably no way in hell I sign with that team even if they do offer me like 1 or 2 million more than anyone else.
Pretty hard to argue against this viewpoint.
Its like the old joke — if it happens once, its bad luck, twice, coincidence, more often, well its gotta be bad planning and/or poor execution.
I know they are not alone in this but the Oilers’ well-established pattern of — out and out — lying about player injuries just annoys the hell outta me.
Yes, much like it is hard to argue against the statement “God is real because the Bible says so”.
My question is how has Hall been playing meaningless games with a bum shoulder!? Dragging him on their road trip, we all thought he had a concussion. After all the team’s injuries, their medical staff leave alot to be desired…
I’m more concerned with the amount of strength training he’s going to miss out on in the offseason. At the end of six months he’s going to recover to the strength he has now. Not much for progress, but I guess we have to look further down the road.
aaaaand, cue the snide comments from fans in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Boston, etc about Hall being fragile and the Oilers getting another glass player.
Sami Salo is an oft-injured player, Andrei Markov is an oft-injured player, J.F. Jascques was an oft-injured player. Hall won’t likely be in the same category as those players.
Taylor Hall is a young man who had a nagging injury that wasn’t identified because of his tremendous athletic abilities in spite of the damage. Hall will likely have to have both shoulders operated on by the end of his career. One down, one to go.
Ladislav Smid had to have his season cut short because of a nagging neck injury he suffered back in his junior days and his play this season would seem to indicate there are no adverse affects.
Also, I think we as fans tend to oversimplify sometimes the concept of diagnosing injuries in these high-performance athletes. Was the shoulder injury missed? Perhaps. But it isn’t as though the training staff could put him in a Star Trek-style scanner that would show every little misplaced tendon and muscle strain. I have more concerns about the protocols followed around Theo Peckham’s concussion than Hall’s shoulder and whether there are two tier’s of health concern on the Oiler’s roster.
Great. Playing your young franchise player when he’s hurt, and winning enough i the process to blow our lottery chances. We look like a “Mickey mouse” organization yet again.
At what point does Katz get as fed up as the rest of us and cleans house? Only Stu seems to be doing a good job…
What I want to know is what’s the over/under on how many days before the Oilers announce Ryan Whitney’s latest round of ankle surgery?
what a complete and total joke.
~I wonder why the Oilers with held this information at renewal time~?
And just because…… that Seguin hip is sure a major concern hey Oilers brass…….. fn idiots!
And finally….. since this is clearly an old injury… fabulous asset management Oilers…… this season has been over since december and you waste 3 months of potential recovery time for nothing.
Bravo!!!!!
You don’t really know how a hockey team and injuries work do you.
Also.: Are you saying that you would rather have Seguin?
Not good. I’m pissed management didn’t handle this 2 months ago. Hall would already be in recovery, ready to strength train all summer. Ridiculous.
Hemsky 2.0?
It took Hemsky a lot longer to start breaking down and losing time like this.
but Arch 4 says he hurt it in junior four years ago …WTF…83 was first on the shelf in what 05 or 07
still i’ll be taking the under on your 30 years of age thingy
Methinks Hall may be a tad more diligent in the rehab / strengthening process than Hemsky. This injury is all about the work put into rehab and if you put the time in, the chances of a full comeback with no loss of strength or durability are excellent. Range of motion may take a while.
See Taylor Fedun’s recovery process to attest to this!
Constant hard work, even when you’re damaged goods and in pain is essential! Fedun should be back for training camp next season as well.
I’m beginning to wonder if Hall will make it to 30 years old in the NHL.
His reckless style and penchant for injuries dont mix well with me.
would the team docs not have noticed this from the very beginning when he started with the team?
It is concerning but it’s pretty crazy to think that he has been playing for 4 years with a bum shoulder. I’m not too sure how much it has affected him but it’s good that they are getting this done now and if he comes back good as new then this could turn into a real positive. Might as well get everything fixed while we are near the bottom of the league so hopefully he’s healthy going forward.
Its a contact sport, injuries happen. Hall is young and barring a surgery mishap he will recover completely. Hall will miss 6 games due to shoulder surgery and tear it up next year enroute to a big 50 goal breakout year, so relax sports fans. Either that or he will have an injury shortened career, never realize his potential, watch as other young, small oiler forwards get beat down; Katz lose intrest in his toy and lose patience with the arena that never seems to get off the ground, threaten to move to Quebec…
It’s only natural to question why he was allowed to play this year for the people who like to dump on the Oilers at any possible chance.
He had the initial injury 4 years ago. That won’t stop the bridge jumpers though.
I’m just as upset as the rest in regards to this injury but personally I think there is more than just pointing the finger at management. Management obviously has the final say as to whether or not Taylor Hall should play or recover but if you watch Taylor Hall in Oil Change the kid wanted to come out after taking the skate to the face, (Gene Principe just recently interviewed Taylor Halls plastic surgeon and the first thing the surgeon said was Hall was rushing him to stitch him up so he can get back out on the ice) Taylor also wanted to play after that massive hit Ryan Wilson laid out on him which ended up with him leaving yet again. If anything I think Taylor Hall played a pretty big role on whether or not he should play. Self-inflicted but in the end could’ve been handled differently by management. This of course is just based off of personal opinion and what I’ve seen from Oilers games/news.
…MEMO to:
training staff…
order more FRAGILE STICKERS
Reg….loved your comment and how it started all full recovery and 50 goal season but then it trailed off … u ok ?
would the team docs not have noticed this from the very beginning when he started with the team?
No.
There is no magic scanner that points out potential future injuries, or re-aggravations.
Without the player stating it is a concern, the team has no way of knowing.
Everybody should calm down. Look at Hemsky’s shoulders he had surgery on both and now he appears to have stronger shoulders than he has ever had. It will take some getting used to by Hall but, just like Hemsky he will round back into form, and in Hall’s case if this injury was from junior we may see a player that we have never seen. Que the haters of Hemsky and his shoulder’s haha.
You mean the Hemsky who has 34 points in 63 games and 5 points in his last 10 games (4 of them in 1 game) (10Pts in his last 20) or some other Hemsky?
Yeah, that should work.
You can never have enough 40 point players.
Yea points tell you one story but I prefer to watch the games and Hemsky has been playing lights out for awhile now. Hemsky has improved all season and it is obvious that getting comfortable with the shoulder is a huge deal. Can you really deny that Hemsky has looked like his old self lately? Fair points though about the points though.
At the end of the day, unless you are an all round player with good defensive skills, points are all that matter.
Being flashy, dipsy doodling and toe dragging are all good fun on YouTube but they don’t help your team win much.
He has 10 points in his last 20 games.
Using that kind of production as an example of how Taylor Hall will be as good as new when he returns is “lights out” in its own fashion.
My point is that luck is a factor. If somebody plays the same as they ever have and create maybe even more chances (shooting more often as far as I can tell) then odds are that he is not getting all of the luck in the world and he will revert back to his previous point totals.
Com’n folks, Hall is not hurt. Has he looked hurt?
No way. Let’s face it Hall is about to become the first real product of the Katz era. You don’t think Katz sees the link between professional sports, experimental serums, and a drug empire? They chose
Steve RogersTaylor Hall because of his compete level and his willingness to do anythingfor his countryto win.So is anyone from the media actually going to ask Oilers brass why he was playing meaningless games with a bum shoulder?
Time to start making management a little more accountable. I know the average Joe doesn’t know what goes on behind closed doors, but seriously, the evidence of incompetency is adding up.
This just solidifies my fear that this organization couldn’t find its ass with both hands.
Hopefully I’m wrong.
I for one think all the onus of the blame falls on Hall’s shoulders…and really I don’t blame him too much because it’s his competitive spirit which guides the Oilers and as well puts him in tough positions and brings himself back too fast. Injuries happen. I hate that they’ve happened so frequently to the Oilers and to Hall, but they happen to every team…how much are we questioning Crosby now that he’s back and playing lights out?
I’ll be hoping the last hit from Sarich is a lesson Hall about how to be fearless…it’s Ok to be that hungry on the puck, but you’re going to be able to protect it better if you drop your shoulder into the guy (ie: Wilson in video above) or hold him off Hartikainen style…anyways, I hope for the best for him, and I don’t think this will be a long term nagging issue. I think the recovery time includes quite a bit of strength training (although not likely for the first 8 weeks or so). Hemsky, now that he’s recovered from both shoulder injuries, is just getting back…Hall is still really young and will reocover better and quicker due to age.
I would like to see more protection though for these young guys…it has to be a forward like Jones or Eager who gets a 5 game suspension for taking a guy like Sarich out for 20 games (due to a concussion/knee on knee hit/Bertuzzi in an extreme case)…or just take out the instigator penalty…Shannahan is doing a good job, but it will take some help from the players…
Last Oilers I recall scoring twenty goals and then going for shoulder surgery were Shawn Horcoff and Ales Hemsky.
Neither one has been the same since.
Hall will make the third 20 goal scorer with a last name starting “H” who went for shoulder surgery. Let’s hope he breaks the curse.
(due to a concussion/knee on knee hit/Bertuzzi in an extreme case)
K…that’s just talkin’ like you’re outta your mind Shredder … Taylor Hall is at fault I’ll give you that … honestly though can you see the future Captain of this hockey club altering the way he plays the game ? I’m not so sure … IMO he needs to take all his time after the surgery and bulk up…period…he needs to come back… up at least twenty pounds or he’s gonna continue to get creamed and as Arch said he’ll be hard pressed to make it to his 30th b-day and still be in the NHL…he could probably survive his reckless style of compete level if he weighed more and he figured out how to play slower and heavier…in his case his speed is killing him…
I say we start dressing a 7th dman that you can throw on wing when ever you want and I nominate Kiril Tulupov, show him some videos of Semenko and tell him that is how we want you to play. If a fights no really doing much throw a knee to the head its all good.
Exactly.
IF Taylor ACTUALLY weighed what he is listed at, I rather doubt he’d be as “at risk”. TSN list him at 6’1″ and 194, and there is not a chance of that.
As I live in the same condo building, I’ve had occasion to share the odd elevator ride with him. Last I saw him, anything over a buck seventy-five is being counted twice.
He ain’t alone in this either. My old rule @ NHL heights and weights is “everybody lies”. I see no reason to alter this viewpoint.
You sure? he looks pretty solid compared to the other kids.
I weight 170lbs and am 6’1″ and he looks bigger than i am.
I’m not sure what you weigh, but you’d be surprised how deceptive a persons overall size can be compared to their weight.
When my friend got a little belly from the stress and over drinking during his divorce, i said DUDE you’re getting bigger, are you up to 170lbs now? (he was probably 150-160 before). he said “Uhh, try 190 man”.
Taylor hall has quite a bit of muscle. RNH looks like he’s 170lbs, Hall is much more fit looking than him and Muscle weighs quite a bit.
You are right I would really like him to attend a Gary Roberts summer camp. Players that go there put on at least 10 pounds and their balance is also greatly increased. If Hall was to gain 10 pounds and gain the balance to stay on his feet then we have a train on our hands.
We’re all speculating on the severity of the injury.
People maintain athletic life styles for years before finally deciding to get surgery on their knee(s). The muscles that hold your knee caps in place are often damaged in various ways and over time cartilage wears away and can TURN INTO a serious problem. The ‘pain’ is minimal for years and is more like a nagging feeling than actual pain.
It’s likely that Hall has had something similar in his shoulder. He clearly wasn’t playing in discomfort, but he certainly knows that there is an underlying issue there.
I’m not worried. I think the Injured Reserve listing is timely as getting him in for surgery ASAP will ensure he’s ready to go for next season.
Oh, he hurt his shoulder 4 years ago? CLEARLY THIS IS ALL THE OILERS FAULT FORCING A PLAYER TO PLAY TWO FULL SEASONS OF JUNIOR WITH A HURT SHOULDER!!
Because it’s not like Taylor Hall is a savage who only wants to go out and play hockey and win games. And it clearly bothered him so much that he was able to play 126 games over the last two seasons. So, I mean, he must have been complaining to the training staff everyday about how badly he was hurt. And, like JW said, it’s not like pretty much every player in the league is nursing some kind of injury at any given point in the season. No, no, this is clearly something that ONLY happens with the Edmonton Oilers because they run some kind of slave labour camp where they force young men to go out and play professional hockey. HOW DARE THEY!
*Face palms so hard his eyebrows stick to his hand*
If only I could prop this comment multiple times. The amount of hand-wringing going on here at ON is embarrassing.
Props x 1000
One of the finest comments in the history of commenting, the only thing I would add is …THE OILERS ARE SO STUPID FOR DRAFTING A PLAYER WHO GETS INJURED, NO OTHER TEAM WOULD DRAFT PLAYERS THAT GET HURT!
Yeah the only thing I would fault them for is perhaps not doing as much due diligence before drafting him.
But I mean, when he comes back from something like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BMQuNfOzrE you have to think he’s a little resilient.
And like I said if he’s not complaining about an injury, and by all accounts looks like he’s fine when he’s playing, I don’t think too many red flags were going up.
OMG! Jeanshorts, thank you for this.
I am typing with my left hand, as my right palm is now permanently stuck to my face.
Oilers are the only team that gets injured. Remember that hockey fans.
Haha that’s awesome!!
In honour of this post, I just cut off my Levis 501s. I’m gonna be rocking those all summer long.
Oohhhhhh welcome to “Aired Out Genitals” country my friend! You’re not going to regret this.
Thank you ! I will represent well.
Any tips on leg grooming?? Do you shave, pluck, wax? Or do you just let the manliness flow??