It’s no secret, Zach Hyman is as vital to the success of the Toronto Maple Leafs as any of his teammates. He won’t score as many goals as Auston Matthews, or dazzle with the puck like Mitch Marner. However, his value is irreplaceable and almost untraceable on the stat sheet. Which makes it that much harder to project what his next contract will be and howor if Toronto will be able to afford it.
However, the Maple Leafs don’t have long before they have to either sign the 28–year–old or see him walk in free agency this off-season. They have little time to find out everything he brings, what it’s gonna take to keep him and how they could even replace him.
Zach Hyman's first NHL goal. Some things never change. pic.twitter.com/sov1y7EN7C
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) March 20, 2020
A background on Zach Hyman
Hyman was born in the city of Toronto and played three years with the Hamilton Red Wings of the OJHL from the ages of 16 to 18. He was named the Canadian Junior Hockey League Player of the Year by Hockey Canada.
He represented Canada at the 2013 Maccabiah Games in Israel, where he won a gold medal.
Hyman took the NCAA route and joined the University of Michigan Wolverines. During the 2014–15 season, Hyman won a number of awards, including being named the school’s Athlete of the Year and a First Team All-American. He was also a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.
A lot of Maple Leafs fans may not know, but Hyman was not drafted by his hometown team. The Florida Panthers took Hyman in the fifth round, 123 overall in the 2010 draft. However, the two sides were unable to agree on a contract, and Hyman’s rights were traded to the Maple Leafs for prospect Greg McKegg on June 19, 2015.
Hyman debuted with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and had 15 goals and 37 points in 59 games that season. He made a brief appearance in the NHL with four goals and six points in 16 games before being reassigned to the Marlies for the playoff run. They were considered favourites to win the Calder Cup championship that season, but instead the team was eliminated in the third round. Hyman chipped in 6 points in the team’s 15-game run. He played every game despite suffering a broken nose in a game against the Hershey Bears.
At the start of the 2016 season, Hyman earned a permanent spot on the Maple Leafs roster and has ran with his role on the team’s penalty kill and top lines.
Looks like @ZachHyman's out for a little stroll… pic.twitter.com/Ulak7IMNQA
— NHL (@NHL) March 10, 2021
What has he brought to the Maple Leafs?
The Toronto native has 81 goals and 171 points in 330 games in five seasons with his hometown club. Hyman and the Maple Leafs have been to four straight postseasons where he has contributed four goals and 12 points in 25 games across the four series. But Hyman brings more than his two straight twenty goal seasons portray.
He has averaged 130 minutes a season on the penalty kill since he debuted in 2015-16. Hyman has eight shorthanded points in those six seasons, including four shorthanded goals in 2016-17. While at even strength, Hyman has lined up alongside either Matthews and Marner or John Tavares and William Nylander. The majority of his career has been elevating elite players by playing on their wing and going into the dirty areas to get them the puck.
This season he has taken his game to another level and is leading his own line. He had taken over the Maple Leafs third line alongside Pierre Engvall and Ilya Mikheyev and helped create a line that was a nuisance for opposing teams before he had to be put back alongside the big boys on the team to help them generate offense.
He has shown the ability to work alongside elite players and contribute there while also driving his own lines. Hyman is also still effective on both sides of the puck. When analytics are brought into the mix, his value to the Maple Leafs only rises. Hyman has contributed 20.5 more goals than a replacement level player at his position. He also has added 2.9 more goals than a replacement player by drawing penalties and letting the Maple Leafs big dogs eat on the power play.
Hyman has contributed 4.3 wins above a replacement level player and has played at the value of a $12 million player. This is while only taking up $10.8 million of Toronto’s cap hit over those six seasons ($1.8M per season). That has made him a solid value, but that brings who his next deal would compare to.
Hyman’s Comparables
Hyman is on the final year of a four year, $9 million ($2.25 AAV) contract he signed in 2017, one of the last contracts Lou Lamoriello signed before turning over the reigns of the Maple Leafs to current GM Kyle Dubas. Hyman will be looking for a significant raise as his on-ice production and value has continued to rise.
The best comparable for Hyman is four time Stanley Cup champion Chris Kunitz. Hyman is a set-up man just like Kunitz. He came over via trade to the Penguins in 2009 on their path to the first cup of the Sidney Crosby era and played alongside Crosby for another eight seasons. He made an all-star game, received Selke votes and even made the 2014 Canadian Olympic roster. Part of it was because of his well known chemistry and his ability to retrieve the puck alongside Sid.
The two contracts Kunitz signed with the Penguins were a two year, $7.45 million ($3.725M AAV) in 2011 and a three year, $11.5 million ($3.85M AAV) in 2013. Those deals took up 5.79 per cent and 5.99 per cent of the Penguins salary cap. That is easier to compare with today’s salaries because of how the cap has risen since then.
This would roughly equal a $4 million deal for Hyman. That may be something the Maple Leafs may not be able to afford. The way they could fit in the books is by lengthening the deal. Make it $3–$3.5 million over six–to–eight seasons and it may be more attractive to both sides. Hyman would get financial security for the majority of the rest of his career. He would be 34 and on the downswing by the time that deal expired. The Maple Leafs also get one of their more important core players on the cheap for a long time.
"I think he's a really important player because of what he does and what they lack elsewhere."
Brian Burke and the Hockey Central panel discuss why Zach Hyman is so important to the @MapleLeafs. pic.twitter.com/LRBTKQWyfQ
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) February 28, 2020
When will Zach Hyman sign?
Leafs fans stressing about why GM Dubas hasn’t signed Hyman can breathe a little sigh of relief. There is a strong chance the team is waiting until after the expansion draft to make that move. If Toronto were to sign Hyman right now, they would have protect him. Seattle only gets a five-day window to negotiate with Hyman if taken. He would become an UFA once that window shuts.
There is a belief Hyman and the Maple Leafs have a handshake agreement. They will wait until after the expansion draft to make it official. The Maple Leafs should be open to giving Hyman close to whatever he wants. This will ensure the team chemistry and the effectiveness of their best players stays as high as it already is.
