The implication of the Montreal Canadiens extending Jake Evans before the trade deadline is clear. In re-signing the fourth-line centre to a four-year, $11.4 million deal, the Habs are going for “it” this season, and that in and of itself is an undeniable positive… even if the contract is less than completely ideal.
Now one point out of the second wild-card spot after their fifth win a row, the Canadiens at least have a shot at making the playoffs. And, after three straight losing seasons and the fire sale of assets that ensued each year at around this time, including a last-place 2021-22, there are worse things than sacrificing the return the one-time pending unrestricted free agent was going to yield on the trade market (even if it would have been a first-rounder in an admittedly unlikely best-case scenario).
Canadiens Clearly Have Faith in Evans
However, even if general manager Kent Hughes was able to find a taker for a package including Evans and linemate Joel Armia in an attempt to acquire that elusive first that each on their own certainly wouldn’t have fetched, there are no guarantees a trade partner was going to go that high anyway. So, if you have faith in Evans as a bottom-six forward, when even a late first doesn’t necessarily translate into a player of that quality, logic does dictates you stand pat. It doesn’t dictate you extend him for four seasons at Age 29, though.
Related: 2025 NHL Trade Deadline Tracker
In the end, Evans had earned a raise and his new $2.85 million cap hit is a reasonable one compared to his current $1.7 million salary, at least based on his current production. Honestly, if Evans can replicate his offensive performance in 2024-25 throughout the term of this deal, it becomes a legitimate bargain. However, realistically, considering his 20.3% shooting percentage this season, which is over double his career mark, he’s simply unlikely to maintain this level of production into his 30s as a penalty-killing specialist.
To his credit, Evans has scored near a 30-point pace each season since 2021-22. However, in each of those seasons, the Canadiens sustained significant injuries. As mentioned above, each of those seasons were abject failures (purely from a standings perspective). Just last month, with Emil Heineman injured and head coach Martin St. Louis searching for line combinations that worked amid their disastrous 1-7-1 pre-4 Nations Face-Off stretch, he and Armia were promoted to the second line over several games, with little to show for it in terms of offense (or wins), which is the issue here. If you’re relying on Evans to score consistently in a middle or top-six role, especially at this stage of his career, you’re likely to be disappointed.
However, if all you’re expecting is a hard-working fourth-line centre capable of chipping in the odd point, so be it. So, in an ideal scenario, Evans plays more in line with the 14:29 he did in 2022-23, which is when he scored 19 points in 54 games (a 29-point pace, but infamously with just two goals) and the Canadiens were fairly flush at centre with a newly acquired Sean Monahan and Kirby Dach available to take reps there.
Evans an Undeniable Contributor to Canadiens’ Success
If that end result comes to fruition, you’re looking at a pretty decent outcome where Evans will have only been relied on to play fourth-line minutes. That means the rest of the lineup will have largely stayed intact. Based on how well the team performed over its successful 1.5 months from early December on when healthy (16-6-1, culminating in a temporary grasp on a playoff spot), that’s a pretty decent outcome. And truth be told Evans undeniably contributed to the surge up the standings that resulted from that run, which bodes well for their overall chances.
Plus, with their centre position suddenly mired in uncertainty, with Kirby Dach having suffered another season-ending knee injury and Christian Dvorak set to hit unrestricted free agency himself, the Canadiens at least have someone coming back on whom they know they can rely. The alternatives would have been:
- Re-signing Dvorak, when he’s proven to be less of a fit
- Acquiring someone new via free agency or trade with no guarantee they fit either
- Rushing one or several of their prospects to take over
Granted, prospect Owen Beck seems like he’s going to be promoted full-time regardless. However, there are legitimate question marks surrounding the Canadiens at centre past this season. Had Hughes gone forward with the rational plan of action, to trade all his pending unrestricted free agents (Armia, Dvorak, Michael Pezzetta and David Savard) based on the team’s low odds of making the playoffs (even on the five-game heater), he would have had to move ahead with one of the above options even sooner.
Now, it becomes a question of whether Hughes trades anyone at all. Evans was his biggest chip heading into the deadline. The rational plan of action changes as a result. If you can’t secure a high-end pick or prospect for anyone on your trade block, you may as well just keep the band together and see how far it gets you. No one is saying the Canadiens should re-sign anyone else, and, besides maybe Savard at this point, it wouldn’t make sense to.
Still, that doesn’t mean those players can’t contribute to a significant run in the here and now, though. Despite the less-than-ideal circumstances of Evans’ extension, it doesn’t mean he can’t at some point over the next four seasons. Based on how well the team has played when healthy, there’s little reason to believe he won’t.
