Oilers News: Evan Bouchard signs 4-year extension with Edmonton Oilers worth $10.5M per season

According to AFP Analytics, Bouchard was projected to sign a max contract worth $87 million spread over eight years with an annual cap hit just short of $10.9 million. This contract represents a marginal discount taken before the chance of any external offer sheets.

Implications on Oilers’ cap flexibility heading into Free Agency

Assuming both Noah Philp and Kasperi Kapanen (re-signed today) start the year in Edmonton, the Oilers’ roster for next season projects as follows:

The above configuration leaves the team with $4,775,834 in cap space, with 1-2 forwards (or a goalie) left to sign, barring no other moves to clear cap space. It will be fairly difficult to find a winger for Leon Draisaitl and also upgrade goaltending with such little money left to spend, but let’s see what Stan Bowman & co. can cook up in the coming days.

A quick note to the Bouchard doubters

Evan Bouchard has been a polarizing player throughout his career. Even during his junior days, fans of the London Knights would comment on his casual demeanour and seemingly lackadaisical play. Despite appearances, however, Bouchard was often on the right side of the puck.

As Kris Knoblauch mentioned, his plan of attack when facing the Knights as an OHL head coach would be to “take advantage of [Bouchard, since] he look[ed] a little sleepy out there, maybe a little lost”. Eventually, he learned his lesson — “we never did”.

Bouchard’s game is one that can easily fly under the radar if you’re looking for him to fill the traditional, “defensive” role. He isn’t a very physical player, he doesn’t block shots, and he’s prone to the occasional high-profile turnover that typically ends up with the puck in the back of his team’s net.

That said, there are a variety of elements to Evan’s play that make him a unicorn in the National Hockey League. For one, he is an extremely effective offensive defenceman – his outlet passes ranked third in the NHL last season, and despite holding the puck for over 127 minutes, he only turned over the puck approximately 10% of the time, ranking him 5th lowest among all active defenders (clearly, our eyes aren’t showing us the full picture).

Beyond that, Bouchard has also been an excellent playoff performer. In the history of the league, He ranks second in playoff points per game by a defenceman (behind Bobby Orr), and has led the post-season in scoring from the blue line in each of the past three years. For a team that’s looking to climb the final hump and secure it’s first championship of the 21st century, it’s imperative that they keep a player like Evan Bouchard on the roster, someone who can continue elevating when the game is played at its highest level.

Closing thoughts

During Connor McDavid’s season-ending media availability, he made a point to comment on Evan Bouchard’s contract status, saying that it’s “definitely a deal that needs to get done”. In a summer where re-signing the Oilers’ captain will likely be the most critical move of all, this extension goes a long way toward showing Connor that Edmonton is committed to winning and will remain a contender through his prime years. The core will be back — now it’s up to them to get to work and finish the job.