Looking back at the 2018 and 2019 drafts, nearly all of the defenders who have established themselves at the NHL level wound up signing bridge deals following the conclusion of their entry-level contracts.

This can largely be attributed to the lower-than-expected salary cap ceilings from the past few seasons. Teams have less salary cap room to take long-term contract gambles on young players and those players can also be advised by their agents to wait until the cap finally rises by a significant amount before locking into what might be the biggest contract of their career.

The one defenceman who bucks this trend is Quinn Hughes, the No. 7 overall pick from the 2018 draft. Hughes scored 97 points over 129 games on his entry-level contract and the Vancouver Canucks signed him to a six-year, $47.1 million deal in October of 2021.

But while the Canucks were able to get Hughes signed long-term, they could only get star forward Elias Pettersson signed to a three-year bridge contract at the same time. Again, this is the result of the post-pandemic salary cap reality. Pettersson’s bridge deal expires next summer and he’ll be one year away from unrestricted free agency with a huge salary cap increase right around the corner.

Circling back to Bouchard, the Oilers have $4,282,500 in open space for his contract, but at least $775k needs to be set aside so that the team can afford to carry another extra skater on their active roster. With that in mind, the goal for the Oilers should be getting Bouchard signed for $3.5 million or less.

Given what Dobson, Miller, and Byram have earned, Bouchard would be taking a discount if he signs for two or three years at $3.5 million annually. The two sides need to either agree to a cheap one-year deal or another contract needs to be moved out for the Oilers to be able to afford to sign Bouchard for multiple years while maintaining roster flexibility.