Who is the best NHL free-agent signing ever?

The question was on their minds after Hyman became the 99th player to score 50 goals in a season on Sunday.

In the NHL's 107-year history, there have been 208 50-goal seasons. It is not an impossible feat, but it is rare, and, in Hyman's case, not the kind of production usually seen from a guy who signed a contract for seven years and $38.5 million in 2021 - an average annual value (AAV) of $5.5 million - tied for the 175th highest paid player in the league.

With 19 players making eight figures a year and a salary cap that's only increased by $2 million over the last five years, finding high-level production from mid-salaried players is essential to building a Stanley Cup-winning roster. Hyman is providing precisely that for Edmonton. 

While it's too soon to proclaim him the best-ever FA signing, and the Oilers have yet to win a Cup with him, who else deserves consideration for the best NHL free agent signing?

Biz and Whit mentioned Marian Hossa and Zdeno Chara. Ed Belfour and Adam Graves also deserve a look.

Marian Hossa

Hossa signed with the Blackhawks in 2010 after famously losing back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals with the Penguins and Red Wings. He signed a front-loaded 12-year, $62.8 million contract, a deal so undeniably unscrupulous that it immediately got the Blackhawks in trouble and helped lead to a ban on similarly structured deals.  

The trouble was worth it when Hossa led them to a Cup title in his first year, and long forgotten by the time he helped them win their third in six years in 2015.

Summary: $5.2 million AAV for eight seasons, three Stanley Cup Titles, helped build a dynasty

Zdeno Chara

Chara had a similar impact on the Bruins after signing a five-year, $37.5 million deal in 2006. He captained them for 14 years, won the Norris Trophy in 2009 and led the team to two Stanley Cup Finals, winning one in a seven-game series against the Vancouver Canucks in 2011 and losing the other to Hossa's Blackhawks in 2013.  

Summary: Initial $7.5 million AAV over five years, two Stanley Cup Finals appearances, one Cup win, one Norris Trophy

Ed Belfour

Nine years in Chicago saw him make one Cup Final (a 1992 loss to the Penguins) and win two Vezina and three Jennings Trophies. Belfour was traded to the Sharks in January 1997 after GM Bob Pulford decided he couldn't afford to re-sign him after the season.

Belfour's Sharks tenure lasted a forgettable 13 games, but after signing as a free agent with Dallas in 1997 for $10 million over three years, he won his fourth Jennings and won his and the Stars' first Stanley Cup in 1999.

Summary: $3.3 million AAV for three seasons, one Jennings, one Stanley Cup, helped Dallas smooth their transition from Minneapolis to Dallas 

Adam Graves

Graves signed with the Rangers in 1991 as a restricted free agent at ~$400k annually for five years. Two years into the deal, he scored 52 goals and was vital to the Rangers' 1994 Stanley Cup win, their first in 54 years. 

Summary: ~$400k for five years, 52 goals in '93-'94, one Stanley Cup trophy, 280 goals in 10 years

Conclusion

The "banners hang forever" algorithm gives Hossa a clear lead, but Hyman could still catch him with a Cup or two, something imminently feasible with Connor McDavid on his team.