Jake Evans at $2.85M per season: overpaid in the eyes of Simon Boisvert

Dose
Crédit: Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

Kent Hughes didn’t make any moves at the trade deadline, after all.
He kept everyone… And he was even able to extend Jake Evans’ contract.
That was the big news on deadline day in Montreal.
Evans signed a four-year extension worth $2.85 million per season.
A good deal under the circumstances, since the player could probably have earned more money on the free agent market.
But in the eyes of the Snake (Process), $2.85 million for a fourth-line player like Evans is too much.
Simon Boisvert is aware that the salary cap of NHL teams will skyrocket in the coming years, but still:

Even if it’s not the end of the world, Evans, in my opinion, won’t be worth $2.85 million. – Simon Boisvert

In fact, the Snake – who would have liked to see Armia, Evans, Dvorak, and Savard traded – has a point that can be defended.

The Canadiens will want to compete for the top honors soon, and they can’t necessarily afford to have a “negative” contract on their books for that to happen.

In 2022, the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup with supporting players like:

  • Andrew Cogliano (cap hit of $1 million)
  • Logan O’Connor (cap hit of $725,000)
  • Nico Sturm (cap hit of $725,000)

In 2023, the Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup with supporting players like:

  • Paul Cotter (cap hit of $760,000)
  • Michael Amadio (cap hit of $762,500)
  • William Carrier (cap hit of $1.4 million)
  • Keegan Kolesar (cap hit of $1.4 million)

In 2024, the Panthers won the Stanley Cup with supporting players like:

  • Ryan Lomberg (cap hit of $800,000)
  • Kevin Stenlund (cap hit of $1 million)
  • Nick Cousins (cap hit of $1.1 million)
  • Steven Lorentz (cap hit of $1.05 million)

These guys all contributed to their team’s success by playing in the bottom-6, mostly on the fourth line (Evans’ chair)… and earning a very respectable salary.

But we also have to look at the other side of the coin.

Evans is a fourth-line player (maybe a third-line player at best), but he’s also the defensive pillar in situations of numerical disadvantage. He’s the one used on the first wave of the penalty kill because he’s excellent at what he does.

We know his usefulness in Montreal, he’s in the best years of his career, and that’s probably why Kent Hughes decided to give him such a “big” contract.

And even then, the percentage of Evans’ salary in the cap will be minimal when the salary cap rises to $113.5 million in 2027-2028.

In a flash

– Attention all interested parties:

– I love it!

– Good point.

– To be continued.

– The Rams have released Cooper Kupp.