Stanley Cup Playoffs preview: Hall among traded players to watch

The 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs start Saturday and NHL.com is taking a look at different types of players who can have a big impact on the postseason. Today, players who changed teams before the 2021 NHL Trade Deadline on April 12.

Taylor Hall, Jeff Carter and Nick Foligno are among the big names acquired before the 2021 NHL Trade Deadline who could help their new teams make a deep run in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Teams across the NHL try to find the piece or pieces that makes a good team great and a contender for the Stanley Cup into a favorite.
Last season, the Tampa Bay Lightning received that jolt after they landed forwards Blake Coleman from the New Jersey Devils and Barclay Goodrow from the San Jose Sharks at the 2020 NHL Deadline. Coleman scored 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 25 playoff games and Goodrow had six points (one goal, five assists) in 25 games and provided a physical presence throughout as Tampa Bay won the Stanley Cup for the second time in its history.
Is there a champion among the players obtained at the deadline this season? We'll find out across the next two months, but here are six of the most likely candidates (listed alphabetically):
Sam Bennett, Florida Panthers
Bennett talked of a fresh start and having more to prove when he was traded to the Panthers from the Calgary Flames on April 12. So far, the forward is proving he was a good acquisition. The 24-year-old has fit in well at second-line center with left wing Jonathan Huberdeau and right wing Owen Tippett, and has scored 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 10 games. He missed one game with an upper-body injury but returned in the Panthers' 5-1 win against the Lightning on Saturday. Bennett has scored 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) in 30 career playoff games. He brings some postseason experience to the Panthers, who qualified for the playoffs for the seventh time in their history.

Jeff Carter, Pittsburgh Penguins
The 36-year-old has looked rejuvenated with the Penguins, who acquired him from the Los Angeles Kings on April 12. Carter has scored 11 points (nine goals, two assists) in 14 games with the Penguins, including four goals in an 8-4 win against the Buffalo Sabres on May 6. Carter won the Stanley Cup with the Kings in 2012 and 2014 and has scored 74 points (39 goals, 35 assists) in 120 playoff games. Carter knows what it takes, adding to the Penguins championship pedigree established by forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, who led them to Cup wins in 2009, 2016 and 2017.

Nick Foligno, Toronto Maple Leafs
Captain of the Columbus Blue Jackets since 2015, Foligno was one of several important players moved by Columbus before the deadline. The Maple Leafs acquired him in a three-team trade (with the Sharks) on April 11. The 33-year-old has four points, all assists, in five games with the Maple Leafs, who won the Scotia North Division on Saturday. Foligno has missed the past two games with an upper-body injury but should be ready for the playoffs, where he has scored 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 51 career games.
Taylor Hall, Boston Bruins
The Bruins were having trouble generating offense throughout the season. On April 11, they were sixth in the MassMutual East Division with 106 goals. They got a boost when they acquired Hall from the Sabres, along with forward Curtis Lazar on April 12. Playing left wing on the second line with center David Krejci and right wing Craig Smith, the 29-year-old has scored 14 points (eight goals, six assists) in 16 games with the Bruins after scoring 19 points (two goals, 17 assists) in 37 games with the Sabres. The Bruins are 12-3-1 since trading for Hall. Now they need him to carry his late-season success to the postseason, where he has scored 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 14 career games.

Anthony Mantha, Washington Capitals
The Capitals aren't really lacking for offense, with 188 goals in 56 games, tied with the Panthers for second in the NHL behind the Penguins (193). But it never hurts to add another productive forward at the deadline, which they did when they acquired Mantha from the Detroit Red Wings on April 12. The 26-year-old has scored eight points (four goals, four assists) in 14 games for the Capitals. His impact was immediate, as he became the first player in their history to score a goal in each of his first four games (April 13-18).
David Savard, Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning added to their already strong defense when they acquired Savard from the Blue Jackets in a three-team trade that also included the Red Wings on April 10. Savard, on the right side of the second defense pair with Ryan McDonagh, has zero points in 14 games and is playing 20:26 of ice time per game. The 30-year-old has 11 points (one goal, 10 assists) in 37 career playoff games.