Zach Hyman preparing to sign with the Edmonton Oilers
By Neil Becker
According to Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas, gritty heart and soul forward Zach Hyman won’t be wearing the blue and white next year.
Hyman, who is an unrestricted free agent, has been negotiating with the Edmonton Oilers, and is days away from signing.
“So at that point, I think it was fairly clear to us internally based on the discussions and where they had been or even the feeling on it, that he was going to be on the move,” Dubas told NHL.com. “You know, we had done what we could to try to make it work, and unfortunately we couldn’t. “Everybody knows how we feel about Zach Hyman here, and even though it won’t be here, we are happy for him.”
It’s expected that on Wednesday, July 28th, when NHL free agency opens up, Zach Hyman will be signing a lucrative long-term deal with the Oilers worth between 5.1 to 5.8 million a year.
Classified as a late bloomer, Hyman was originally drafted 123rd overall in the 2010 NHL Entry by the Florida Panthers but never played for them as he was traded on June 19, 2015, to his hometown Leafs.
During his time with Toronto, Hyman played in 345 games where he totaled 86 goals along with 185 points.
Without question, Zach Hyman’s best year as a Maple Leaf came in the 2017/18 campaign when playing on the number one line with superstar Austin Matthews, he scored what was then a career-high 15 goals along with 40 points. The following season this left-winger improved on those stats as he scored 21 goals and 41 points.
Last year in what was the shortened 56 games season, Hyman continued to show that relentless work ethic and great penalty killing as he played in 43 games and totaled 15 goals along with 33 points.
Zach Hyman, who last year was an alternative captain completed what was a four-year 9 million contract extension that he signed back on July 5, 2017.
Prior to making the NHL, Zach Hyman played three years for the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Hamilton Red Wings before playing three seasons for the University of Michigan.
No doubt Zach Hyman’s high energy, timely scoring a relentless work ethic will be missed by Leaf fans.
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