Hyman on being ready for start of season: 'I don't know'
Published
Edmonton Oilers forward Zach Hyman had a tough end to his 2024-25 campaign.
The 33-year-old winger had just come off his most impactful game of the playoffs, recording two goals and three points with a plus-5 rating in the team's 6-1 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final to give the Oilers a 2-1 lead in the series.
But Hyman's season would end early in Game 4 after a collision with then-Stars forward Mason Marchment dislocated his wrist, knocking him out of the remainder of the playoffs.
Hyman had surgery in May and after three months of recovery, he's still unsure if he'll be ready for the start of the 2025-26 regular season on Oct. 8.
"Will I be ready for the start of the season? I don't know. But I'm on the right track, which is good." Hyman told reporters at Team Canada's Olympic orientation camp in Calgary on Thursday. "The fact that I don't know is a good thing because it could be, 'No I'm not.' [I] have one more meeting with the surgeon to wrap it up, which is great."
The Oilers went on to defeat the Stars in five games as they returned to the Stanley Cup Final for the second consecutive year and set up a rematch with the Florida Panthers.
Florida proved to be too much for the Oilers in the final, taking the victory in six games to become back-to-back champions.
Hyman had been a key part of Edmonton's success the past two seasons, recording a career-high 54 goals in 2023-24 and followed it up with 27 goals and 44 points last year while supporting star players Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on the top two lines.
The Toronto native added five goals and 11 points in 15 playoff games before he was sidelined. He said the idea of not being able to help his team in the final was something he struggled with mentally.
"It was miserable," said Hyman. "It's very horrible, very hard. No matter what, you're stressed, whether you're up or down. You have no control and you're helpless. At the same time, you're trying to keep it all together and be supportive for the guys who are playing.
"So, when I wasn't around them I was a stress case, and when I was, I just tried to be an emotional support system, [an] anchor for those guys."
Hyman's statistical success over the past two seasons and his ability to keep up and contribute while paired with some of the best players in the game throughout his career has put him on Canada's radar for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina, Italy, despite not being fully recovered from his injury.
He was also considered for Canada's roster for last year's 4 Nations Face-Off but didn't crack the team after a slow start to his season.
Hyman is using that as motivation for when he gets back on the ice this season to try to wear his country's colours on the biggest stage in international hockey.
"I'd say watching was more motivation than not making the team because it's more real," said Hyman. "I remember watching with our [Oilers] teammates and cheering for Connor [McDavid] on, and you want to be there, you want to be in those moments, you want to be on the greatest stage. It was disappointing, obviously, and I'll do everything I can to make this one."