In short, either Jake Evans signed, or he was leaving. Right?
This is the rumor going around right now about the Canadiens’ center player, who agreed to sign for less than his worth. At $2.85 million per year for four years, he clearly wanted to stay in the city.
But he clearly didn’t always think he was going to stay. His heart spoke when he chose to take a pay cut to continue what the CH is building, but he still came close to leaving.
To what extent?
This morning, my colleague Maxime Truman wrote an article based on information obtained and shared on the Stanley25 podcast, stating that Jake Evans had warned his landlord (Joël Bouchard) that the apartment he lives in would need a new tenant.
And there, the main person involved, who has talked publicly about his contract, said things that go in that direction. How? By saying that he and his wife were so sure they were leaving that they had already packed their boxes.
Evans, who was talking about the Canadiens in the past tense last month, is happy to no longer have to rent and can finally buy something in the city.
The fact that he signed a four-year contract (even if it doesn’t have a no-trade clause) means that he now has the luxury of settling in the city for good in the coming years.
extension
I’m looking forward to seeing what Evans will look like on the ice for the rest of the season. After all, he’s clearly confident right now and no longer has the weight of his contract on his shoulders.
Now, he can just help the CH try to make the playoffs… by scoring more often than twice since the start of the 2025 season.
The players of the Canadian team believe in their chances of participating in the playoffs.
They have won their last five games… And they seem to be on a mission right now.
This is also one of the reasons why several guys sent a message to Kent Hughes, saying they wanted to see the group remain intact.
But it goes even further than that.
The players do not just want Hughes to keep his team: they also want the general manager to be able to help them by Friday, the trade deadline in the NHL.
Wanting the team to stay intact and wanting help… These are two different things.
But it adds even more importance to the fact that right now, the players do not want to lose.
The players want to have the best chances of winning every night to improve their chances of participating in the playoffs, and if Kent Hughes can do something to help them, they will be satisfied.
Seeing the Canadian general manager take this path – even if we know he does not want to sacrifice his future to help the team in the short term – would also send a big message in the locker room.
This would add fuel and it’s certain that it would motivate the players to give even more on the ice.
There is a chance that this will not happen, however. Again, Kent Hughes will not panic and pay a high price to go get a rental player because it’s not part of his plan.
But if the general manager has the opportunity to improve his team without necessarily hurting his bank of picks and his bank of prospects, it’s certain that he will look at his options.
To be continued. And it will be interesting to see if Hughes will (again) please his players, after the signing of Evans yesterday…
BREAKING NEWS: Jacques Villeneuve will be at the start of the 2025 Grand Prix de France Historique driving Giles’ iconic Ferrari 312T. #F1#Ferraripic.twitter.com/fWtOyst6fy
— Jacques Villeneuve News (@VilleneuveNews) March 5, 2025
– This is new!
FIFA announced that there will be a halftime show at the 2026 World Cup final, at MetLife Stadium. .
For several years, we have seen the Lightning pay a high price at the trade deadline to improve.
In 2023, the club gave up a first-round pick, a second-round pick, a third-round pick, a fourth-round pick, and a fifth-round pick to acquire Tanner Jeannot…
The previous year, the Lightning gave up two first-round picks, Boris Katchouk and Taylor Raddish to get their hands on Brandon Hagel… In 2020, they paid a first-round pick to the Devils to get Blake Coleman… You understand the principle.
But apparently, the strategy will not change in Tampa Bay.
Because according to the latest information from Elliotte Friedman, the Lightning is about to send (at least) two first-round picks to Seattle in order to acquire Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand.
Again… The Lightning is not afraid to pay the high price to improve:
This is going to happen…not sure how it all looks, but understand key part of return is two first-round picks from Lightning to Kraken. https://t.co/be4Q4c0BLQ
I don’t think I need to remind you that at the moment, the veteran is injured.
He no longer trains regularly with his teammates because he is too hurt to do so.
The fact that he is on the ice today is good news in itself.
It’s hard, at the moment, not to respect the veteran’s work.
After all, we all know he’s hurt and not at the top of his game. But we still see him giving it his all every night because he wants to help the team win games.
He’s always ready to go to war and that’s what makes him an important player for the Canadian lately.
Next year, Samuel Montembeault will be the Canadiens’ #1 goalie – unless news shakes the foundations of the Temple.
We also know that Jakub Dobes will be there, but in a role to be defined. If I had to bet, I’d say he’ll be the Canadiens’ #2 goalie. But that can change pretty quickly.
And Jacob Fowler? Logically, he’ll make the jump to the pros and logically, it will be with the Rocket. He needs to play and get ice time: Montreal is not the place for that.
Already, that makes three spots for the four regular goalies in Montreal and Laval. And we haven’t even talked about Cayden Primeau.
Primeau has confirmed to us, for the 2024-2025 season, that he is a “AAAA player”: too good for the minors, but not good enough to establish himself in the big league. He finds himself in a weird position.
And with Fowler pushing, it could force the Canadiens to make some decisions.
According to what Mathias Brunet thinks, we will indeed see a Montembeault/Dobes tandem in Montreal and Fowler in Laval, which would not leave enough room to keep Primeau.
It’s worth noting that Primeau will be eligible for arbitration next year.
La Presse journalist, who answered questions from people live, has the same reading of the situation as me: Fowler will have a veteran from the AHL to support him in 2025-2026 with the Rocket.
Not convinced they’ll keep him. – Mathias Brunet on Cayden Primeau
Of course, the plan still has time to change – especially if Dobes doesn’t break anything in the end of the season in Montreal – several times again. But it’s logical to think that Fowler will go to Laval.
Primeau has been doing what he needs to do for the past two months to help himself this summer, but he’s still swimming in uncertainty.
Rapid Fire
– To note.
The Canadiens’ management didn’t follow the team to Western Canada.
– Clark, Piette, Campbell, Synchuk, Neal, and Vrioni are all out of the group. That’s over $4 million in salary and the (likely) biggest transfer of the team that’s not training regularly 3 days before the next… pic.twitter.com/99erIJFgW8
At the moment, in the National Hockey League, there is only one team that has won its last five games. It’s the Canadiens.
Since the return from the break, the team has been undefeated. The players have proven to Kent Hughes that they deserved to make a push to try to make the playoffs by not losing a game since the Super Bowl.
And Jake Evans’ contract gives a good idea of the direction the team will take by Friday.
However, before the trade deadline, the Canadiens will face the Oilers. This will take place tomorrow night and it will be against a team that has been completely lost for a few games.
In fact, in the NHL, only one team has earned just two points in its last five games: the Oilers.
Edmonton lost to the Ducks yesterday and if we forget the win on March 1 against Carolina, the team has only been losing. The last five games in February (7, 22, 23, 25, and 27 February) were all losses.
It doesn’t show too much in the standings because of the cushion the team had built up at the beginning of the season, but it’s still a bad streak. Only one win since February 6, that’s not a lot.
(Credit: Sportsnet)
Obviously, no one is saying the game will be easy. After all, the Oilers won’t give up just for the sake of it: they will fight for their survival.
How will Martin St-Louis’ men respond? We’ll see.
However, it’s important to note that even if the Canadiens lose, it shouldn’t affect the team’s plans for the trade deadline too much. I imagine Kent Hughes, at this point, knows what to expect.
To be continued tomorrow night.
In brief
– Transaction in the NHL.
As @ByTimReynolds reports here, Panthers get goalie Vitek Vanecek for Patrick Giles. No salary retained on Vanecek’s $3.4M cap hit. Panthers have plenty of cap room with M. Tkachuk on LTIR. https://t.co/ZGAL823iI5
Jake Evans can never aspire to be Mikko Rantanen. But there are connections to be made between the two.
I don’t know how much the former Avalanche player really expected to be traded in the event of a salary dispute with his old club, but it happened.
And since he’s been in Carolina, he’s… uh… is the term miserable too strong? A little, yes.
But you see where I’m going: whether it’s the fault of the club or the player, Rantanen has been put in a situation where he says he feels like his world has been turned upside down recently.
The trade hit him hard.
Jake Evans, I’m convinced, is aware that changing teams (and leaving an environment you love) is stressful. In recent weeks, it’s been weighing on him, from what we’ve seen.
So he decided to listen to himself and leave money on the table to stay in Montreal, a unique place to play hockey and an environment in which he was comfortable.
Be aware: I’m not saying Rantanen should have accepted any offer from his old team. But by force of circumstances, he’s in a tough spot right now.
What I’m saying is that in light of what he sees elsewhere in the NHL, Evans made the enlightened choice not to change addresses, not to touch a winning formula, and to stay in an environment he loves. And that’s to his credit.
Steven Stamkos (who didn’t have an offer to his liking from the Lightning, it should be noted) is another example. Since he’s been in Nashville, he’s not even a shadow of himself.
That doesn’t mean it would have happened to Evans elsewhere. But he didn’t want to take the risk, and that’s okay.
Meanwhile, Evans is one of the best players in his position and he won’t have to leave Emil Heineman and Joel Armia – for now, at least. As a fourth center and a specialist in numerical disadvantage, it’s hard to ask for more.
And for a seventh-round pick, it’s also hard to ask for more.
Jake Evans, one of the best seventh-round picks of the last 15 years: https://t.co/DQetPWHRki
Last year, the Winnipeg Jets picked up a rental player in Montreal: Sean Monahan. Will history repeat itself in 2025?
Obviously, following the signing of Jake Evans, it’s not a given that Kent Hughes will want to trade his rental players. Especially if the right price isn’t available on the market…
Darren Dreger this morning on the #CH over the next few days, on @TSN690:
He reiterated that Kent Hughes wants to complete a “hockey trade” and that he’s not really a short-term buyer.
He also believes that the Jets have an interest in Savard and Armia if…
— Marc-Olivier Beaudoin (@MOBeaudoin1) March 5, 2025
Obviously, the price would have to be really high. Because for an ordinary pick, the Canadiens won’t let Armia (who has already played in Winnipeg) or Savard go.
Not with Jake Evans signed and the Canadiens being one of the hottest teams in the NHL… even without Kaiden Guhle and Kirby Dach.
Note that the Canadiens are also open, at the right price, to making a hockey trade as such to bring in not a rental player, but an element for the future in the city.
Darren Dreger also discussed the topic on the radio.
When the Canadiens went after Alexandre Carrier, it was with this same mindset. And since it helped the team a lot, it’s logical to believe that doing the same thing is in the plans of the GM.
Because a rental player, in the circumstances, wouldn’t be the most… logical thing for the plan.
Despite their recent 5-win streak, the #CH has 13.4% chance of making the playoffs according to MoneyPuck.
— Marc-Olivier Beaudoin (@MOBeaudoin1) March 5, 2025
If Kent Hughes were to go after a piece for the future after keeping Jake Evans, it would be an excellent week for the Canadiens’ management. Will it happen?
Twenty-four hours ago, we were wondering if Kent Hughes was going to trade or risk losing for nothing Jake Evans next July.
Very few people were still talking about the possibility of seeing Evans sign a contract extension. It’s essential to understand that Evans’ agent and Kent Hughes hadn’t spoken in several weeks, and in their last communication, Evans wanted between $17 and $20 million over five years, but the Canadiens were only offering between $10 and $12 million over four years.
Before the 4 Nations tournament, Jake Evans was talking about his adventure in Montreal in the past…
But before packing his bags for Western Canada, Jake Evans let his agent know that he didn’t want to leave Montreal and was willing to accept the Canadiens’ offer… even if it was several million dollars less than his initial demands.
And that he could have gotten those extra millions on the free agent market.
That’s why since yesterday, fans and media members have been praising Evans’ decision: he wanted to stay in Montreal, even if it meant earning less money than elsewhere. When everything is working for you in hockey AND personally, it’s always a risk to try to go elsewhere. Just ask Mikko Rantanen…
Except that I told Stanley25 yesterday that last weekend, Joël Bouchard was offering one of the apartments he owns in his real estate portfolio, but doesn’t live in, to some people who chatted with me. We’re talking about Jake Evans’ apartment here.
Evans and his girlfriend have been renting an apartment owned by Joël Bouchard for some time now. There were so few negotiations between the Canadiens and Evans’ camp that Joël Bouchard was in “renting his apartment to someone else” mode.
And Evans was already preparing (reluctantly) for his potential move…
Last week, Jake Evans and his partner were preparing – reluctantly – for their move.
They were convinced they would be leaving Montreal.
His contract extension is a complete reversal of the situation.
It’s fun to see a guy accept less money than he could have…
This shows how much of a surprise Evans’ signing was for many people yesterday. And how much Kent Hughes comes out on top in his negotiations with Evans’ camp.
He stayed firm on his positions and managed to sign Jake Evans to a salary that doesn’t take into account the significant and expected increases in the salary cap.
Jake Evans and his partner were ready to leave Montreal.
(Credit: Getty Images)
Does this mean Jake Evans won’t be leaving the apartment he’s currently occupying?
Let’s just say he’ll be staying there for at least a few more months than if he had left the team this week.
Except that not all millionaires necessarily want to be owners, you know. Having responsibilities, paying the welcome tax, having to resell in a few years because you don’t plan on staying here in retirement…
Sometimes, accepting a $2,500 per month rent – that’s it – has its charm and advantages.
Extension
– We have to give credit to Renaud Lavoie, who never stopped believing in a new contract for Jake Evans in Montreal.
– Evans may have left money on the table, but he’ll still earn over $11 million in the next four years. Not bad for a seventh-round pick…
He’s not to be pitied.
– Jake Evans won’t have a no-trade clause in his new contract. The real master of the art of the deal isn’t Donald Trump, it’s Kent Hughes.
– After consistently filling the net, Jake Evans has only scored two goals in his last 25 games, including one into an empty net. The Law of Numbers always catches up with mathematical irregularities in the long run. Evans was hitting the target on about three out of ten shots. It was impossible to maintain.
– If Kent Hughes had traded Evans, it would have looked like he was abandoning his players. If he had kept him without offering a new contract, it would have been said that the Canadiens lost an important asset (a second-round pick or an unacquired prospect in return). No one is saying anything negative now.
– Cole Caufield will have at least one of his good friends in Montreal for the next few seasons. Remains to be seen what the Canadiens will decide to do with Christian Dvorak…
I don’t see what chair they could give to Dvorak, though. Evans and Dvorak were both candidates for the fourth-center spot in 2025-26.
– Looking forward to seeing what the Canadiens will do with Joel Armia…
– It’s always an advantage to be paid in USD but live in CAD…
– I invite you to watch episode 26 of Stanley25 to hear things about Amazon, RDS, TSN, Kirby Dach, David Reinbacher, Joshua Roy, Logan Mailloux, Lane Hutson, Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, TVA Sports, Ivan Demidov, Alex Ovechkin, and Wayne Gretzky. Enjoy the show!
We knew that a contract extension was imminent for Mathieu Olivier and the Blue Jackets.
But did you think that the Blue Jackets’ depth player was going to sign a six-year contract with the Ohio formation? Clearly, he is really appreciated in his current environment.
We’re talking about an $18 million contract in total, or $3 million per year.
Mathieu Olivier extension.
$3,000,000 AAV X 6 Years
Season NHL Salary
2025-2026 $4,000,000 US
2026-2027 $3,900,000 US
2027-2028 $2,900,000 US
2028-2029 $2,400,000 US
2029-2030 $2,400,000 US
2030-2031 $2,400,000 US
To play comparison games, he will earn more money than Jake Evans per year and he has two more years on his contract. What is your preferred agreement between the two?
Olivier is having an excellent season, he can score and fight. He brings grit to a team.
