Zach Hyman will go down as one of the best free agent signings in modern NHL history, and now he's revealed how the free agency process went down with Toronto.
Now, he prepares to face his former team, and has addressed the details behind his departure into what he has become with the Edmonton Oilers.
Zach Hyman on leaving Leafs in free agency:
"When I was going through the process, I didn't look at any other teams beside Toronto until I knew that that door was closed & didn't have much of a choice with regards to that door."
"When I was going through the process, I didn't look at any other teams beside Toronto until I knew that that door was closed & didn't have much of a choice with regards to that door."
With a career high of 21 goals, it's easy to see why Toronto didn't value Hyman as much as the Oilers did, but looking back, it's a situation that they certainly didn't expect to happen. In three seasons since joining Edmonton, Zach Hyman has tallied career highs in goals in each season, with his 50th goal just two away as he prepares to battle his former team in Toronto on Saturday night.
Hyman doesn't seem to hold too much of a grudge against Toronto for letting him walk, but emphasizes just how much hard work has played a role in the situation he finds himself in now.
Zach Hyman: "I haven't had the easiest journey in the sense that I was never the best player on my team & nobody thought I would continue to progress, so just continue to hit little milestones & continue to work really hard & just believe in yourself."
The 31-year old has become a star that no one expected alongside Connor McDavid, and while few saw this coming, it still has to hurt the Maple Leafs seeing his success on a Canadian rival team.
| POLL | ||
23 MARS | 446 ANSWERS Zach Hyman Comments on how Maple Leafs Fumbled his Free Agency Would Hyman have notched 50 goals playing in Toronto still? | ||
| Yes | 159 | 35.7 % |
| No | 287 | 64.3 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
Latest 10 stories
