Rumor: Three free agent options to play with Auston Matthews in 2021-22

According to a report from TSN's Pierre LeBrun, it appears that forward Zach Hyman will be moving on from the Toronto Maple Leafs this offseason. The 29 year old forward is coming off a contract that pays him $2.25 million per season and is likely looking at as much as $5 million or more per season on his next deal. With the Leafs' cap situation, this just isn't an option for general manager Kyle Dubas.

The Leafs have have approximately $11 million in cap space with just 10 forwards, five defencemen and one goaltender signed for next season. They'll need to add at least seven players to their roster with that $11 million in cap space and Hyman's asking price is simply too rich for the Leafs to consider. So, for the third offseason in a row the Leafs stand to lose a quality forward due to cap constraints. Forwards Andreas Johnsson, Kasperi Kapanen and Connor Brown have been cap casualties so far and it looks like Hyman is set to join them.

“Sounds like he’s testing the market,” Elliotte Friedman told the FAN 960’s The Big Show when discussing Hyman. “I heard they were significantly far apart.”

 Wherever Hyman ends up, he'll be a versatile forward capable of playing anywhere in a team's lineup. He played mostly alongside Leafs superstars Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner on the team's first line this season and put up a very solid 15 goals and 33 points in 43 games. The season before he put up 21 goals and 37 points in just 51 games. With Hyman seemingly out of the picture for the Leafs though, who will step up to play on the team's top line alongside Matthews and Marner? The free agent market is likely to provide GM Dubas with a few intriguing options, even at his limited price range. 

How about Montreal Canadiens forward Tomas Tatar? Despite putting up over 60 points last season Tatar seems to have fallen out of favour with new Habs head coach Dominique Ducharme. In truth, Tatar has had his job taken away from him by rookie sensation Cole Caufield but don't sleep on the veteran Slovak. He's still got great offensive instincts and could be had for a very reasonable cap hit. 

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Blake Coleman is more or less a carbon copy of Hyman and will likely be available at half the price on the open market. He's fast, skilled and has a dogged determination. He fights through checks, digs out pucks and takes a lot of punishment. If you didn't know who he was before, you likely got a great introduction to him with his game winning goal in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final this post-season.

Another utility forward with some experience playing with skilled players is Colorado Avalanche winger Brandon Saad. The pending free agent has played alongside Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen this season and was a mainstay alongside Jonathan Toews with the Chicago Blackhawks. His offensive numbers have declined somewhat the past couple seasons but he's still just 28 years old and looks to have plenty of gas left in the tank.