Zach Hyman: The best mistake the Toronto Maple Leafs ever made
Published Feb 29, 2024 • 3 minute read
What was Kyle Dubas thinking?
For an organization that always considered itself the smartest team in the room, letting Zach Hyman walk away for nothing is one of the Toronto Maple Leafs all-time colossal blunders — that keeps getting bigger by the season.
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And the Edmonton Oilers would like to thank the former Leafs GM very much for the gift that keeps on giving.
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Twenty-seven goals in his first season with the Oilers.
Thirty-six goals in his second season with the Oilers.
And now 40 goals and counting in his third season.
Not bad for the bargain price of $5.5 million a year.
“Scoring 40 is a huge accomplishment,” said Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who couldn’t be happier that Hyman came to Edmonton after six seasons in Toronto.
“I’m sure there were lots of people out there doubting him early in his career but he is the epitome of someone who works for everything he’s got. He’s done that in spades and obviously here in Edmonton he has fit right in. He continues to score big goals for us.”
He has 103 in 211 games, to be exact, most of them coming from the blue-paint buffet that Ryan Smyth used to feast on back in the day. Having somebody who goes to the hard areas and has the poise and hands to convert is something that meshes perfectly with McDavid’s roaming style.
It’s also something that drives goalies mad.
“In practice he’s one of the hardest workers,” said goaltender Stuart Skinner. “He comes to the net and grinds it out around the paint and he’s actually quite annoying in practice because sometimes you want to feel the puck and he doesn’t let you.
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“That’s why he’s successful, the way he goes to the net, goes to the hard areas. That’s why he’s scored 40 goals.”
Hyman never scored more than 21 in a season in Toronto, but you could kind of see this coming after he netted 15 goals in 43 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season. But when he became eligible for unrestricted free agency, the Dubas flow charts deemed him expendable and the Leafs let him walk.
The chemistry with McDavid was instant and keeps getting stronger by the season.
“You learn, and a lot of that just has to do with communication,” said Hyman, who has eight goals during his current six-game scoring streak. “He thinks the game so well. If I’m able to think it with him and get to spots that that he can get the puck to, then we’ll have a good chance to score.”
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It’s more than just playing with McDavid, though. Toronto has good players, too, and Hyman was never a threat to score 50 there. And if you think that just putting a player on a line with McDavid means the goals are coming automatically, ask Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto and Connor Brown how that worked out.
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It takes a special player to forge that kind of harmony and Hyman is the perfect fit.
“Obviously, he’s playing with a pretty good player most nights with Connor at center, but he’s got to find a way to do it,” said head coach Kris Knoblauch.
“And he’s pretty good around the net, whether it’s not getting his stick tied up, finding soft spots around the net. That’s all hockey smarts. There are players where plays die when it gets on their sticks and Zach’s not like that.
“And then the goal-scoring ability is crucial. If you’re playing with a guy who’s going to set you up like Connor does, it’s nice to have a good finishing touch.”
While the rewards are obvious, there is also a pressure that comes with being a McDavid winger. You don’t hope for production, you expect it. If the line goes two games without generating anything it’s a slump that probably cost the team a couple of games. So there’s that.
“It’s easy in the sense that you’re going to get opportunity,” said the 31-year-old. “But it’s hard in the sense that there’s pressure to produce every night and to score and to be one of the best lines in hockey because you have the best player in the world.”
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