With two years left on a seven-year, $5.5M contract, Zach Hyman has just four points through the first nine games of his season. At age 34, some might be worried if time has caught up to him.
Let’s take a closer look at where Hyman is, how he fits on the Edmonton Oilers roster, and what the future might hold between the two.
How injury and linemates have affected his play
There are two incredibly evident factors contributing to Hyman’s slower start. First, he has missed time with injury. Of course, it is difficult to tell how much the time off affects him from a rust standpoint, let alone any lingering issues. Second, is that he no longer plays alongside Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl at even strength.
Breaking down his usage might require more subtlety, but simply put there are surely huge boosts to Hyman’s production when paired with a superstar. Undoubtedly, Hyman has benefitted, especially how his more rugged skillset and straightforward play style meshes alongside puck-dominant stars. To this extent, Vasily Podkolzin is looking to replicate Hyman’s effectiveness, taking ownership of a spot alongside McDavid and Draisaitl at even strength.
Though Hyman will be losing out on some even strength production, his power play spot remains in his grasp. This will help pad his offensive stats, just as it has over his Oilers tenure.
Finally, time will pass every player by, in the end. Hyman is not exempt from this. At some point his effectiveness will diminish, but a slow start to the season does not necessarily indicate that time is upon us. Hyman’s rugged style often puts him in harm’s way of being injured, which adds a layer of concern. Still, his work ethic and conditioning have been elite, which could help him retain his form.
Even more, Hyman has had an unconventional career arc, improving throughout his late twenties and early thirties. Regardless of how Hyman ages, his career arc will be fairly different from the usual. For now, the Oilers seem to be quite top heavy, meaning that the team needs Hyman to be near his best to have success.
Breaking down Hyman’s numbers
Speaking of stats, they might offer a closer look into Hyman’s slow start. Below are Hyman’s seasons as an Oiler, looking specifically at his even strength and power play production per 60 minutes, his even strength shots per 60 minutes, and his overall shooting percentage (per Hockey Reference) as well as his average shot speed and top skating speed (via NHLEdge).
| Season | EV pts/60 | Pp pts/60 | Ev shots/60 | Shooting % | Avg shot speed (MPH) | Top skating speed (MPH) |
| 21-22 | 2.1 | 3.3 | 8.9 | 12.7 | 42.07 | 22.74 |
| 22-23 | 2.7 | 5.7 | 10 | 13 | 38.79 | 22.92 |
| 23-24 | 2.6 | 4.6 | 10.5 | 18.6 | 40.66 | 22.76 |
| 24-25 | 1.7 | 3.1 | 8.7 | 12.9 | 46.01 | 23.08 |
| 25-26 | 2.3 | 4.3 | 7.6 | 19.5 | 37.27 | 23.06 |
| 26-27 | 0.6 | 2.5 | 4.6 | 7.1 | 43.96 | 22.61 |
Granted this season provides a limited sample size, but some things stand out. His power play production rate is slightly lower than usual, but his shots per 60 minutes and shooting percentage are uncharacteristically low.
Hyman has only one even strength point, a secondary assist. Stronger linemates would certainly bolster this stat, if not McDavid or Draisaitl then perhaps Matthew Savoie could do a lot here. More concerning might be his even strength shots per 60 minutes, which are way down from his usual. Given the nature of Hyman’s off-puck effectiveness, a playmaker like Savoie could really help Hyman generate more.
Whether Savoie will be ready to drive his own line or not is one question, but Hyman appears to be doing his part physically. His average shot speed and top skating speed are very similar to his work from 2023–24, where he potted 54 goals. The Oilers might eventually split McDavid and Draisaitl, which would likely see one alongside Hyman, or trade for another impact forward, but a healthy Savoie picking up where he left off last season is still the most elegant solution.
Where does Hyman fit in the lineup?
The Oilers still need players who are older than McDavid and Draisaitl to pull their weight. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Mattias Ekholm join Hyman as foundational players in this lineup. At the same time the team needs younger players to start pushing up the lineup. Vasily Podkolzin plays a similar style to Hyman, and was a much more highly rated prospect. Already the gap between the two has started to close, but hopefully that has more to do with Podkolzin progressing than Hyman aging.
At the same time, Matthew Savoie plays a different style than Hyman. Perhaps their play will continue to elevate each other, as the two had some shared success last season. In some ways Hyman is ceding space to Podkolzin, but he could soon be helping unlock Savoie. This convergence offers a lot of hope for the Oilers, as having Podkolzin and Savoie grow into key roles while Hyman and Nugent-Hopkins are still effective gives the Oilers a good deal of depth.
While Hyman’s overall production stats might dip, he still brings a lot of dimension to the roster. His forechecking and physicality are evergreen traits that help any lineup. His elite work ethic bodes well for his longevity. His continued growth shows that he can find new ways to make an impact.
In all it is very likely that Hyman continues to vastly outperform his contract. His current contract is amongst the best free agency additions in team history, if not league history. A subsequent contract is further away, but chances are the Oilers will be paying for a rugged second line winger more than they are a 50 goal scorer. Hyman could earn another fine contract, and might even be able to provide great value on that for the chance to stay with the Oilers.
Hyman plays a huge role in team success
Ultimately, as much as the question is about Hyman’s longevity, it is also about the Oilers quality as a team. It has been a curious start to the season, the team getting off to a much better start than usual. There are already obvious improvements over last season, namely the consistency to accrue points in the standings. Forging a strong identity can go a long way towards becoming harder to beat in the playoffs. Devon Levi certainly deserves a mention, and the overall team defence has shown some promise.
At the same time, many are concerned with the team behind its stars. McDavid, Draisaitl, and Evan Bouchard are as incredible a trio as can be assembled, but should they play so much? Can the rest of the team provide enough to support them? Should they play together so often rather than being spread throughout the lineup?
While not all questions have easy answers, Hyman getting on track can be a big part of the solution. A would-be second line of Hyman, Nugent-Hopkins, and Savoie have been largely absent, stretching the Oilers depth. Even before considering potential x-factors like Isaac Howard, there is some internally sourced optimism for a more convincing process.
The Oilers have gotten so close to their ultimate goal before. That’s said, last season the team was not well organized enough to make it out of the first round. The Oilers will need to be tougher to beat. Giving McDavid, Draisaitl, and Bouchard a stable defensive team and a strong penalty kill has been crucial to their past playoff successes. Providing them a strong blueline, and some quality checking forwards is huge in that as well. Goaltending remains part of the equation, of course.
However, the team will need other scorers as well. Hyman needs to be a strong version of himself for this to work, among other things, but he is still capable of doing so.
Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire
