Evan Bouchard's massive contract demand may put the Edmonton Oilers in a difficult position
Edmonton Oilers star defenseman Evan Bouchard is up for a new contract in the 2025/26 NHL season and the rumored ask would put the Oilers in a rather tough spot going forward, money wise.
The right handed defenseman, who has put up 41 goals and 130 assists for 171 points in 265 games, fully broke out into a superstar last season, averaging over a point per game for the first time in his career. He had 18 goals and 64 assists for 82 points in 81 games while logging heavy ice time against the oppositions best players.
On the way to the Stanley Cup final, Bouchard also chipped in 6 goals and 26 assists for 32 points in 25 games.
The rumored contract ask of around $11 million AAV would shoot Bouchard up to the top of the list of highest paid defenseman in the league, but would put the Oilers in a very complicated spot in regards to the salary cap.
As it stands going into the 2025/26 NHL season, the Oilers have just $10.6 million dollars in cap space with other players such as Jeff Skinner, recently acquired Ty Emberson and Corey Perry. If the Oilers choose to give Bouchard the money that he is currently asking for, that would already put the Oilers over the cap for next season.
Source: Evan Bouchard's Rumored Asking Price
Source for Evan Bouchard's Stats: HockeyDB
Source for Edmonton Oilers Cap Space: PuckPedia
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 18 | 294 ANSWERS Evan Bouchard's massive contract demand may put the Edmonton Oilers in a difficult position How many points does Evan Bouchard acquire in the 2024/25 NHL season? | ||
| 50-60 | 132 | 44.9 % |
| 60-70 | 91 | 31 % |
| 70-80 | 44 | 15 % |
| 80+ | 27 | 9.2 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Kyle Connor | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Alex Tuch | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Owen Power | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Bunting | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Drew Helleson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jirí Kulich | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Isac Lundestrom | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Vladislav Namestnikov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nino Niederreiter | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Gabriel Vilardi | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jason Zucker | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Leo Carlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nikolaj Ehlers | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ross Johnston | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Evgeni Malkin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Josh Morrissey | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Cole Perfetti | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Bryan Rust | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mark Scheifele | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Trevor Zegras | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 20 | 17 | 3 | - | 34 | |
Wild | 19 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 29 | |
Hurricanes | 19 | 14 | 5 | - | 28 | |
Devils | 22 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 28 | |
Capitals | 19 | 13 | 5 | 1 | 27 | |
Golden Knights | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Maple Leafs | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Rangers | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 25 | |
Panthers | 20 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 25 | |
Flames | 20 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 25 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||