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Why Evan Bouchard’s contract makes him more valuable than Cale Makar

Edmonton Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard

Photo credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images

By Ryley Delaney

Aug 29, 2026, 19:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 29, 2026, 19:25 EDT

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Evan Bouchard keeps getting robbed.

The Edmonton Oilers defenceman was easily the best point-producing blueliner in 2025-26, yet didn’t even win the Norris Trophy. In fact, he didn’t even finish as a finalist. Instead, Cale Makar finished second in voting, despite finishing with 16 fewer points. Bouchard was pretty clearly robbed of recognition he deserved.

Makar just signed the largest contract in National Hockey League history Friday night, an eight-year deal worth $163.2 million, or $20.4 million annually. With Makar signing that contract, Bouchard’s four-year deal worth $10.5 million looks like highway robbery.

Now, this isn’t to say that Bouchard is a better defenceman than Makar because he’s quite simply not. Makar had a down year, while Bouchard had a career-best year, but Makar is going to go down as this generation’s best defenceman. That said, for the contract Bouchard is on, there’s a legitimate argument that Bouchard’s value is higher.

Bouchard’s 2025-26 season was underrated

Makar is better than Bouchard, but it’s not as wide a gap as some may think. Last season, Bouchard led all defencemen with 95 points in 82 games. That point total was 14 more than Zach Werenski, who finished second for points by a defenceman, but first in Norris Trophy voting.

The scoring leader among defencemen not finishing as a Norris Trophy finalist does happen from time to time. Tyson Barrie led all defencemen in the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season and didn’t even receive a vote. As for the last time a non-Oiler defenceman led the position in points but didn’t finish as a Norris finalist was John Carlson in 2017-18, though he only had five more than that year’s Norris Trophy winner, Victor Hedman.

For the last time a defenceman led the position in points and didn’t finish as a Norris finalist, you have to go back to the 2013-14 season when Erik Karlsson finished seventh, despite finishing with 13 more points than former Oiler Duncan Keith.

Funnily enough, there are a lot of similarities between where Bouchard is now and Karlsson in the first half of the 2010s. The knock on both of them is that they are/were bad defenders, but in Bouchard’s case, it’s just not true. Most metrics have Bouchard being a positive defender in his own zone, not even mentioning his offensive prowess.

What does Evan Bouchard’s playoff resume show?

That offensive prowess has been on full display in the five postseasons he’s played in. In 81 games, Bouchard has 21 goals and 88 points and has even been the best player for multiple series. The defenceman’s postseason point-per-game sits at 1.086; only one defenceman has a higher PPG in the playoffs, Bobby Orr.

Of course, Bouchard plays on one of the best power plays in history with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Here’s something to put that into context:

Bouchard played 241:10 five on five minutes away from both Draisaitl and McDavid from the 2023 postseason until the 2025 postseason. In that span, the Oilers have 57.1 per cent of the goal share and 58.8 per cent of the expected goal share with only Bouchard on the ice.

What’s shocking is when you isolate both McDavid and Draisaitl in those three postseasons. Without McDavid and Bouchard, Draisaitl played 437 five-on-five minutes, with the Oilers owning 43.9 per cent of the goal share and 42.7 per cent of the expected goal share.

It’s the same story for McDavid away from Bouchard and Draisaitl. Over 181:13 five-on-five minutes away from the two other superstars, the Oilers had 36.8 per cent of the goal share and 47.9 per cent of the expected goal share.

There are no ifs, ands, or buts: the Oilers are a better team with Bouchard, while the right-shot defenceman makes both McDavid and Draisaitl better.

Why does Evan Bouchard have the better contract than Cale Makar?

To his credit, Makar also makes the Avalanche’s best player that much better. Just take a look at how the Avalanche performed in the 2026 postseason once Makar was injured.

This doesn’t even mention his accolades. Makar has won two Norris Trophies, both of which he deserved. In his rookie season, he was the Calder Trophy winner, then won the Stanley Cup in his third NHL season. Oh, he was also named the playoff MVP in 2022, winning that year’s Conn Smythe.

Makar had a tough season, scoring just 20 goals and 79 points, down from 30 goals and 92 points in 2024-25. He is without question the best defenceman of this generation. But that being said, Bouchard provides slightly inferior point production while also making nearly $10 million less annually than Makar.

Give me Bouchard’s contract any day of the week, at least in the salary cap era.

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for DFOEdmonton, DFOCalgary, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on X at @Ryley__Delaney.

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