Taylor Hall is the NHL MVP.

The Devils forward won the Hart Trophy on Wednesday, making him the league's most valuable player for the 2017-18 regular season when he was announced as the recipient at the NHL Awards in Las Vegas.

He edged out Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings, who were also finalists for the award.

Hall finished with 72 first-place votes and 1,264 points, beating MacKinnon's 60 first-place votes and 1,194 points.

The 26-year-old forward is the first Devils player to ever win MVP, and he was the first forward to finish in the top three of voting. Goalie Martin Brodeur finished in third place twice.

Hall became the first forward to win the Hart Trophy without leading the league in points or goals since Joe Sakic of the Avalanche in 2000-01. Sakic finished second in both goals and points that season.

The 2017-18 MVP race took a different shape than recent seasons, with MacKinnon, Hall and Kopitar finishing fifth, sixth and seventh in points, respectively. But all three served as vital parts to postseason berths for their teams, and in Hall's case, his point production towered over his closest teammates.

Hall finished with 39 goals and 54 assists for 93 points. He led Devils rookie Nico Hischier by 41 points at the end of the regular season, when Hischier's 52 points ranked second on the Devils. The gap between Hall and Hischier was higher than the gap between the top two scorers for any other NHL team.

The 2010 No. 1 overall pick also helped the Devils get back into the playoffs for the first time since 2011-12. When the race got tight in the second half of the season, Hall played his best. He started the 2018 calendar year by recording a point in 26 consecutive games played -- a run that lasted from Jan. 2 through March 8.

"It's been more about, how can we clinch a playoff spot? How can we keep climbing up the standings and chasing teams in front of us" Hall late in the season. "Like I've said before, I'm relied upon to produce offense for our team, and that's my role. A lot to guys have roles on this team, and I'm just trying to do my best job with mine."

He entered the season with a career high of 27 goals, and Hall managed to match that number in 2018 after scoring 12 over October, November and December.

Hall also posted his monster second half while playing through torn ligaments in his left hand. He had surgery on April 30 and is expected to be ready for training camp.

MVP chants became a nightly occurrence at Prudential Center over the second half of the season. While Hall appreciated the love and support from fans, the award was never his end game. Getting himself and the Devils to the postseason remained the ultimate goal.

What it means

Hall also put up his monster numbers while playing the majority of the season on a line with with the youngest player in the league in Hischier, plus another teenager in Jesper Bratt.

With an influx of youth around Hall, he played some of the best hockey of his career while fulfilling some of the expectations thrust upon him when he was the No. 1 pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 2010.

Going forward, Hall will be the center of the Devils' direction as a franchise. His played exemplified how the Devils want to play as a team, and he'll be the example going forward.

"When you look at the impact he had on the two young guys, and the production he had, what he did for our team, I just think our team's not where it is without the way that he played," Devils coach John Hynes said. "He was a driving force from day one until game 82, and into the playoffs."

Hall has two years left on his contract, and he's eligible to sign a contract extension with the Devils after July 1, 2019. He said after the season that it would take a good reason for him to leave New Jersey. With an MVP award, a playoff berth and a franchise trending in the right directions, Hall has plenty of reason to stay beyond 2020.

Chris Ryan may be reached at cryan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisRyan_NJ. Find NJ.com Devils on Facebook.