Oilers Should Start Negotiating With Evan Bouchard Before The Start Of The Season
There is no denying the fact that the Edmonton Oilers' number one priority right now should be extending Leon Draisaitl, but in a quick second I would hope they are also talking to Evan Bouchard about his next deal as well. Draisaitl is one of the league's top players, Bouchard is a crucial link on this team that the Oilers would miss.
While there is a slight difference between the two contracts, Draisaitl is an unrestricted free agent while Bouchard is a restricted free agent. If a deal can't get made with Draisaitl he can go a sign with any team in the NHL. If Bouchard doesn't come to an agreement they go to arbitration and a judge tells them exactly what he is getting paid.
The thing is when a team goes to arbitration they compile a list of things the player does wrong to lower his cap hit. That can wear on the player/team bond. I mean how would you feel if someone you know sat next to you and picked up apart? This is why I think the Oilers need to prioritize getting a deal done with Bouchard as soon as possible.
But Bouchard Should Wait
On the other side of this coin is what Evan Bouchard should do. For the Oilers they want this done as soon as possible, but I think the Bouchard camp should wait till the end of this coming season. Bouchard destroyed his previous best in basically every category last season.
Bouchard will want this season to prove that the last season wasn't just a one-off. If he can produce the same or better this coming season then his money earned is only going to keep going up. The more he makes the less other people on the team make at some point a professional athlete needs to be selfish and Bouchard is at that point.
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While I think both sides of this will want to play fair in this negotiation, business is business, and sometimes you need to take feelings out of this. If the Oilers think they are going to get away with not giving Bouchard a massive raise then I think the arbitrator is going to be needed. I love the way Bouchard plays and I think he will earn every penny he gets, I just hope we know how many pennies before it is too late.
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