Hall refains from offering advice for newest No. 1 pick

NEWARK, N.J. -- Edmonton Oilers second-year forward Taylor Hall was excited to be a part of NHL Media Day at the Prudential Center on Thursday.

He was put through his on-ice responsibilities for the television cameras and provided promotional commentary for NBC and several other media outlets. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound left wing, who connected for 22 goals and 42 points in his rookie season, said he feels a lot more confident heading into the 2011-12 campaign.

"This is not a League where you can kind of ease yourself into it," Hall said. "It's very tough, and players are faster, stronger and bigger. But after a while, you start to lean on your teammates because they are a lot better than some of the teammates you've played with before (in junior). It was a learning curve -- but after a while I got used to it and felt very comfortable."

So what did he learn in his inaugural season?

"You learn how to prepare for games," he said. "The biggest thing I got used to was the speed of the game. It was hard at first, but after a while you get used to it and learn how other defenses play and systems. Once you get used to that, it was a lot easier."

While Hall is excited that the organization drafted center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with the first pick of the 2011 Entry Draft, he wasn't about to offer advice to the future star and possible linemate.

"I don't know if I have a whole lot of advice for a player after my first year in the NHL, but he does seem like a poised young man and does seem like someone ready to jump into that situation," he said. "I'm pretty positive that if he shows he's ready to play at the NHL level during training camp and in exhibition games that he's going to stick. I'm hoping he could do that for our team, but overall it's really exciting that he'll one day be a part of our group."