Oilers GM Stan Bowman gives contract update on Evan Bouchard
Training camp has arrived for the Edmonton Oilers, with players filing into Rogers Place this morning to conduct health and fitness tests.
With on-ice sessions expected to get underway on Thursday, the team rolled out a few players, and even GM Stan Bowman, for a few start-of-camp pressers. While the players were focused on the task at hand and moving forward from last season’s disappointing end, Bowman was asked a bit about the off-ice business that needs to be taken care of.
Leon Draisaitl was locked up to a long-term extension over the summer and attention has understandably shifted toward Connor McDavid, whose current contract is set to expire after the 2025-26 season. It’s a hot topic, but one that won’t have a resolution anytime soon as the Oilers captain won’t be eligible to ink a new deal until the summer.
However, one player who can sign an extension right now and is set to become an RFA next summer is Evan Bouchard. Talk about the 24-year-old’s next contract has been scarce this offseason, but there is no doubt that it is among the most important pieces of work that Bowman and the Oilers will have to sort out.
Daily Hive asked Bowman about the state of contract talks between Bouchard and the Oilers.
“Nothing on that yet,” Bowman said. “He’s still a very big priority for our team, he had a fantastic season, he’s a great player, and I think his best years are still ahead of him. We’ll probably get to that at some point.”
Asked #Oilers GM Stan Bowman about Bouchard contract negotiations…
Says there is nothing new to report on that front but that he’s a big part of this team and believes Bouchard’s best years are ahead of him.
— Preston Hodgkinson (@NHLHodgkinson) September 18, 2024
Bouchard is coming off a monster season in 2023-24, putting up an incredible 18 goals and 82 points in 81 games, which is the most productive season by any Oilers defenceman not named Paul Coffey. Bouchard also impressed in the playoffs, adding a whopping 32 more points in just 25 games.
This cemented him as one of the league’s premier offensive defencemen and helped him finish fifth in Norris Trophy voting last season.
His current deal is looking like an absolute bargain for the Oilers with a cap hit of $3.9 million; however, there is no question that Bouchard’s camp will be looking for a significant raise going into next season, one that could land his cap hit in around the $10 to $11 million range on a long-term deal.
As it stands, Bouchard is the team’s undisputed top right-handed defenceman, and with his partner Mattias Ekholm getting up there in age, he may soon be the team’s de facto number-one defenceman sooner rather than later.
McDavid will be the most important contract that the Oilers will need to get done over the next few years, but there is no doubt that Bouchard will be a close second.