Zach Hyman appreciation thread

[diceman934]

Marleau apparently has no grit in his game

things i learn as i get older never cease to amaze me

Yeah I was not shocked by who said it though.

 

[ShaneFalco]

 

[IPS]

because some of us don't believe he should be on a scoring line means we hate the player ?

if Babs stepped down at the end of last season and Hyman was demoted to a checking line by the new coach 99% of the people defending him being glued to Mathews for 2 year wouldn't say a peep about it

The love affair with Babcock around here really is unbearable.

 

[Gary Nylund]

Oh boy, here we go ...

The love affair with Babcock around here really is unbearable.

LOL wut? Babcock gets a ton of criticism here on a daily basis.

 

[CanadasTeam]

I did read what you said and I don't have a problem with people saying Hyman has stone hands or whatever else, they're free to say it and I'm free to say they're wrong. The constant complaints about him being on our top line are annoying though - anyone can see that they've completely derailed this thread.

Nithoniniel showed some nice analysis as far as Hyman's production goes showing it to be quite good considering his role. If someone wants to rebut this they should do more than say "he should get 50 ES points" (just to choose one example of what I consider to be nonsense posted ITT).

The hidden agenda really is to show that Babcock's ideas, decision making, line combination and all other coaching techniques aren't good -- theirs is better #FireBabcock.

 

[IBeL34f]

The love affair with Babcock around here really is unbearable.

Interesting - I find the folks who can't listen to a single pro-Hyman standpoint without bringing up Babcock to be unbearable.

Seriously, people are just trying to show some appreciation for a guy who gives 110% every shift while being a solid 5v5 contributor at a $2.25M cap hit, and they can't make it a few pages without someone else coming in with a bunch of garbage about Babcock and his 'supporters'.
(Not to even mention the fact that half of the posts by such folks as Hotpaws include strawman arguments that literally have never been mentioned by a single person on these Boards.)

 

[saltming]

If you watch the games... Hyman constantly just dumps the puck into the corner... the guy literally can't make a pass (at least from the LW). He also doesn't win puck battles despite what everyone thinks. Matthews always has to come in and fight along the boards to win the puck battles. So Hyman isn't doing Matthews and favours by always taking the puck to the corners.

The important point that you're missing is that Matthews and Nylander are not just your average 1st line players. Anyone on that LW should be putting up a ton of points and helping Matthews get to 60 goals on the season. The fact that Matthews is only scoring at around 40 goals a season is because he plays with Hyman and doesn't get enough PP time.

Unfortunately, we never got a chance over the last 2 years to see how Matthews and Nylander would do with a different LW. But all I can tell you is that whatever line Hyman is on is going to under-perform. He's a bottom 6 player with very little skill and should be nowhere near the top 6. I don't blame Hyman at all. I blame all this on Babcock. He is possibly the worst coach in the league. Oh well... good thing our roster is stacked... we might be able to win a cup even with Babcock and Hyman. If he puts Hyman in the bottom 6.... watch out... cause our top 6 will be unstoppable.

Remember Hyman is a righty playing left wing, dump and chase is his safest play. I would not like him throwing backhand pizzas in the neutral zone.
I think you are missing or don't want to acknowledge that Hyman is not supposed to be on that line to score, hes a support player and he produces just fine for his role.

 

[saltming]

If I recall the post I remember one of the comparables being Oshie. Nylander in 2 seasons has career highs better than any of Oshie's prior seasons (injuries have played a role however). Nylander to me is what you hope for in a top line RW. Oshie is not. Now I get what everyone is saying. Compared to other players in a similar situation he stacks well. That's fine and very good to hear. I'm happy that on teams that deploy lower skilled players on their top line Hyman falls in line with their production. I personally just feel like a player that has more skill can bring more to that line than Hyman does. No knock on him at all, just a hunch I have based on what I've seen (i.e Nylander being unwilling to defer to Hyman at times, Nylander and Matthews being doubled teamed, etc.)




I don't know if deserved is the right word people should be using. His production may be in line with similar level players in those positions, but the Leafs have players that may very well exceed what Hyman brings when put in said position. When I look at the Leafs winger depth I would rather have....

Nylander
Marner
Marleau
Kapanen
And Johnsson

So while it's good to see Hyman performing nicely amongst his peers, I personally feel like the Leafs are in a position where they can plug in a player that will perform better than Hyman does in that role.

Of the players you mention only Marleau could handle the punishment Hyman does on the forecheck and at his age I'm questioning that too

 

[White Shadow]

Some folks just disagree,or is that new for you? I certainly can't relate to your thoughts on the matter,but I won't stoop to calling you wrong!

Disagree all you want, but on my side there are several Cup winning coaches and actual research papers. Whereas on your side there's....opinion.

 

[frizzer1]

I'm old.......I don't use these newfangled statistics much.
I just watch the guy play.........and based on that here's what I see.

Hyman is a right winger with speed, determination, forechecking ability, and limited skill.
When on the right wing he can use his strength and speed to bull his way to the front of the net.......that creates opportunities for his linemates.
Every team needs a guy like Hyman...he gives everything every shift and sets a good example for his teammates,especially the younger ones


But babcock has him playing on the left side.......he can neither take a pass nor make a pass on his backhand.
He does win puck battles but his slow reaction time with the puck usually leads to being checked before he can do much.
However when he does win those battles he disrupts the other team's offense..

So for me he is a perfect 4th line checking winger....like all 4th liners he has strengths and weaknesses..

To sum up...this debate about Hyman is all due to the coach putting a player in the wrong position.
Hyman does not deserve the criticism...the coach does.
In my opinion, anyway.

 

[saltming]

the thread was 4 months old with barely any posts , why did you think a poster like Salt bumped it if not to drive traffic and stir things up ?

Because people were using the prospects thread to talk about Hyman so....

 

[White Shadow]

he can go as low as 2% and he won`t lose his spot regardless how loud the fan base screams

and as i already posted we have more than enough quality wingers for the top 3 lines even if Babs chooses to play Hyman on the 4th line , this team lines aren`t dependent of Hyman playing with either Mathews or JT

Getting mad at a hypothetical decision the coach hasn't even made seems like a lot of wasted energy to me. Have it I suppose.

 

[saltming]

why would i have an agenda against Hyman ?

and why bump an appreciation thread when the player hasn't played a game in months other than the poster was fairly certain it would help drive traffic ?

What is this traffic you speak of? Is there a gift I get if the thread gets a lot of posts?
Asking for a friend...

 

[ToMaLe]

I'm old.......I don't use these newfangled statistics much.
I just watch the guy play.........and based on that here's what I see.

Hyman is a right winger with speed, determination, forechecking ability, and limited skill.
When on the right wing he can use his strength and speed to bull his way to the front of the net.......that creates opportunities for his linemates.
Every team needs a guy like Hyman...he gives everything every shift and sets a good example for his teammates,especially the younger ones


But babcock has him playing on the left side.......he can neither take a pass nor make a pass on his backhand.
He does win puck battles but his slow reaction time with the puck usually leads to being checked before he can do much.
However when he does win those battles he disrupts the other team's offense..

So for me he is a perfect 4th line checking winger....like all 4th liners he has strengths and weaknesses..

To sum up...this debate about Hyman is all due to the coach putting a player in the wrong position.
Hyman does not deserve the criticism...the coach does.
In my opinion, anyway.

nicely said!

 

[hotpaws]

You struck out ...he hit a grand slam.

how was Hyman a proven NHLer before he even played a game in the league ?

 

[Gary Nylund]

I'm old.......I don't use these newfangled statistics much.
I just watch the guy play.........and based on that here's what I see.

Hyman is a right winger with speed, determination, forechecking ability, and limited skill.
When on the right wing he can use his strength and speed to bull his way to the front of the net.......that creates opportunities for his linemates.
Every team needs a guy like Hyman...he gives everything every shift and sets a good example for his teammates,especially the younger ones


But babcock has him playing on the left side.......he can neither take a pass nor make a pass on his backhand.
He does win puck battles but his slow reaction time with the puck usually leads to being checked before he can do much.
However when he does win those battles he disrupts the other team's offense..

So for me he is a perfect 4th line checking winger....like all 4th liners he has strengths and weaknesses..

To sum up...this debate about Hyman is all due to the coach putting a player in the wrong position.
Hyman does not deserve the criticism...the coach does.
In my opinion, anyway.

So if Hyman's as bad as you say he is and assuming Marleau takes his place on a line with Matthews and Nylander, are you expecting a sharp increase in Matthews' ES point production?

 

[hotpaws]

So if Hyman's as bad as you say he is and assuming Marleau takes his place on a line with Matthews and Nylander, are you expecting a sharp increase in Matthews' ES point production?

and i guess you're expecting a sharp decrease now that Hyman is off AM's line

 

[ShaneFalco]

I get both sides
I say let's see what he does this year - maybe away from AM

 

[nsleaf]

how was Hyman a proven NHLer before he even played a game in the league ?

He wasn't but is now. What's your point? Do you believe he was gifted the job? If so, so what, ends justify the means IMO.

 

[IBeL34f]

and i guess you're expecting a sharp decrease now that Hyman is off AM's line

Does a player have to an unquestioned superstar, notably boosting the stats of everyone around them, in order to be effective and worthy of appreciation in your eyes?

Literally no one has ever said that Hyman is irreplaceable, or that he's responsible for the production of his linemates, or even that he's anything more than something of a middle-6 player that you can rely on to play in any situation and bring his game, but yet you stoop to absolutely ridiculous hyperbole in order to try and discredit this player, his coach, and anyone who says anything positive about them.

I'm not sure if it's more funny or more sad that the only reason a Zach Hyman appreciation thread ever needed to be a thing in the first place was because people got real f***ing tired of schticks like yours and wanted to give the guy a little love for the work that he puts in at a $2.25M cap hit.

 

[Boutette]

Hyman is a right winger with speed, determination, forechecking ability, and limited skill.
But babcock has him playing on the left side.......he can neither take a pass nor make a pass on his backhand.
So for me he is a perfect 4th line checking winger....like all 4th liners he has strengths and weaknesses..

How do you imagine a player with limited skill, playing with one hand tied behind his back as you describe, manage to be a team leader in ES points, no matter who he plays with?

 

[meefer]

"Zach Hyman appreciation thread". Reading comprehension seems to be in short supply for some around here.

 

[Polaris1010]

Oh boy, here we go ...

HA HA HA HA!

Hyman!
Hyman!
Hyman!

 

[hector morrison]

Disagree all you want, but on my side there are several Cup winning coaches and actual research papers. Whereas on your side there's....opinion.

Your side?

 

[hector morrison]

You're fine to your opinion but this post is garbage.

You replied though!With an opinion! Why bother?