Taylor Hall decides to wear the No. 4
The Edmonton Oilers announced Wednesday that top draft pick Taylor Hall will be wearing the No. 4 when he reports to rookie training camp this Friday.
The last Oiler to wear that number is current club president Kevin Lowe, who played for the Oilers in their glory days in the 1980’s.
"It's a very cool number," Hall told the Canadian Press. "It's just kind of passing the torch, you know?"
The Oilers selected Hall with the first overall pick at the NHL Entry Draft in June. Hall won two consecutive Memorial Cup championships playing for the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League. Hall was also voted as the most valuable player of the tournament in both years.
Hall also commented on taking Lowe’s number after 15 successful seasons playing defence for the Oilers.
"He's been a big part of this organization for a very long time and I realize that. At the same time, they feel I'm a player who can come in and make an impact. Maybe wearing this No. 4 is going to do that."
Lowe, who was also a first round pick by the Oilers, played 13 consecutive seasons for the team from 1979-92, winning five Stanley Cups along the way. Lowe was then traded to the New York Rangers where he spent four seasons helping the Rangers win the Stanley cup in 1993-94. Lowe then returned to the Oilers in the 1996-97 season and then retired a year later.
The Oliers also announced that Jordan Eberle will wear No. 14 and Magnus Paajarvi will wear No. 91. Eberle and Paajarvi are also recent first round draft picks. Eberle was selected 22nd overall at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and Paajarvi was selected 10th overall in 2009.
Hall told the Edmonton Journal that he was asked about his number selection "about once a day." Hall had worn No. 19 at the Oilers development camp back in July, but at a recent rookie showcase tournament in Toronto, he was the only Oiler prospect to not have a number at all, leading to the speculation.
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