EDMONTON, ALBERTA – MAY 18: Zach Hyman (number 18) of the Edmonton Oilers celebrates a goal during a game. [+] The second period of Game 6 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, second round, against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta on May 18, 2024. (Photo by Cody McLachlan/Getty Images)
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The star power of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals is exactly what the league needed to showcase the sport on the biggest stage of all.
Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov and Sergei Bobrovsky gave the Panthers a commanding lead, but now Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Stuart Skinner have rallied to get back into the series and bring the Cup back to Edmonton with at least one more game to go.
This list doesn’t include the third-leading scorer in the NHL this season, but this is a perfect free agent signing for Edmonton.
Leading up to a historic season from Toronto star Auston Matthews (who just signed a four-year, $13.25 million contract), four players were able to eclipse the 50-goal mark in the regular season this season.
Behind Matthews is Panthers guard Sam Reinhart, who has 57 goals in the final year of his contract. Reinhart, who will earn an average of $6.5 million per year in 2023-24, will be able to choose his own price after coming off one of the most impressive walk-on seasons in recent NHL history.
Los Angeles, California – April 23: Edmonton Oilers player Zach Hyman (number 18) celebrates a goal… [+] Leon Draisaitl (No. 29) and Evan Bouchard (No. 2) score during overtime in Game 4 of the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, a 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Kings, at Crypto.com Arena on April 23, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry Howe/Getty Images)
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The Oilers’ Zach Hyman is third on the list with 54 goals in 80 games this season. When you compare him to the other top players in the league on this list, you can see how cost-effective signing the veteran was for Edmonton.
Hyman has only moved from Eastern to Western Canada in his nine-year career, having signed with the Oilers in 2021 after playing six seasons with the Maple Leafs.
After Hyman consistently posted bottom-line 35-40 points per season in Toronto, usually against even-strength opportunities, the Oilers signed the former fifth-round pick to a seven-year, $38.5 million contract that put him under a salary-cap hit of $5.5 million.
The raise came with an expected larger role on offense, a role Hyman assumed in his first two seasons, setting career highs in points totals and goals in those first two seasons.
He took an even bigger leap in his junior year, becoming the team’s leading goal scorer with 15 power play goals and seven game-winning goals.
Obviously, it’s easier to put the puck in the net when surrounded by the talents of Connor McDavid, who assisted on 35 of Hyman’s 54 goals.
But even the most optimistic Oilers fan probably wouldn’t have expected Hyman to have as much success as he did last season. Looking at the rest of the league this year, here’s how Hyman compares to the league’s other top goal scorers in terms of average goals per game:
Matthews (TOR) – 69 goals, average annual value of $13.25 million
Reinhart (FLA) – 57 goals, average annual value of $6.5 million
Hyman (EDM) – 54 goals, average $5.5 million per year
MacKinnon (COL) – 51 goals, average annual value of $12.6 million
Panarin (NYR) – 49 goals, average annual value of $11.643 million
Matthews’ scoring has been on a historic pace all season, and while Nathan MacKinnon and Artemi Panarin are paid to do more than score pucks, it just goes to show how good this season has been for the two scorers facing off in tonight’s game.
EDMONTON, ALBERTA – JUNE 21: #18 Zach Hyman of the Edmonton Oilers scores a goal past Sergei… [+] Bobrovsky (number 72) of the Florida Panthers during the second period of Game 6 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta on June 21, 2024. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
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Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
But Hyman’s season was one of many moves by Ken Holland that got the Oilers out of the Western Conference bind and ultimately got them to where they are tonight.
Hyman is just the seventh Oilers player to surpass 50 points and, compared to the others on this list, he is receiving the lowest percentage of a cap hit of any player to surpass 50 points in an Edmonton uniform.
So, while this already placed him among the elite free agents, his postseason performance has further elevated his status and may make him one of the best free agent signings in franchise history.
Heading into Game 7, Hyman has a league-leading 16 goals, 10 even-play goals, six power-play goals and 88 shots on goal. After a quiet start to the Stanley Cup, Hyman has earned points in the Oilers’ final three wins, including a key breakaway goal in Game 6 that ultimately helped extend the NHL season.
Hyman has played well so far in the four years remaining on his contract, but the 32-year-old Toronto native could be a key player in tonight’s historic run and add another chapter to his legacy with one of the league’s most successful franchises.
