This is not unfamiliar territory for the Leafs, save for the fact that they might actually salvage some value in return for Hyman prior to losing him.
If they don’t, Hyman will join a growing number of players who have walked out of the organization as UFAs for nothing in return in the five-year run where the Leafs have been eliminated in the first round every single season (note: technically, they lost out in the play-in round against Columbus — not the first round).
This growing list of players includes:
- Zach Hyman
- James van Riemsdyk
- Tyler Bozak
- Jake Gardiner
- Leo Komarov
- Tyson Barrie
- Cody Ceci
- Tomas Plekanec
- Brian Boyle
- Ron Hainsey
- Roman Polak
- Tyler Ennis
- Kyle Clifford
- Zach Bogosian (likely)
- David Rittich (likely)
- Riley Nash (likely)
- Ben Hutton (likely)
- Nick Foligno (likely)
Now, some of these are trade deadline acquisitions, so while it might not be the same as a long-tenured player walking for free, they are players the Leafs paid assets for, the team was promptly eliminated, and the players then walked for free.