The Ottawa Senators recently re-signed one of their future stars to a long-term contract extension, locking up defenseman Jake Sanderson to an eight-year deal worth $8.05 million per season that begins in the 2024-25 season. Sanderson, who is 21 years old, only has 77 NHL games under his belt, so the term is a risky investment they hope will pay off in the future. In those 77 games, Sanderson scored four goals and 32 points, for a 0.42 points-per-game average. He played really well defensively last season and has the potential to become a top-tier defenseman at some point in his career.
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A couple weeks ago, the Edmonton Oilers re-signed restricted free agent defenseman Evan Bouchard to a two-year contract extension worth $3.9 million per season. Although he is two years older, he has been playing well over the last couple of seasons and has earned a contract that will let him prove himself as a top-pairing d-man.
Between the two, Sanderson has a touch more strength in the defensive zone, but Bouchard is one of the best offensive defensemen in the NHL. Unfortunately, the new Sanderson extension could mean trouble for the Oilers when Bouchard is up for a new deal at the end of the 2024-25 season.
Sanderson Vs Bouchard
The two players can be compared quite easily. They’re close in age and are considered the future top defensemen of their team. While Bouchard isn’t the stronger player defensively, he has made up for it offensively. While Sanderson has been quite good offensively as well, Bouchard is on a completely different level. The argument could be made that Bouchard has better teammates and that Sanderson’s game would improve with the Oilers, but that would only be hurting the Oilers’ chances of getting Bouchard locked up long-term when his two-year bridge deal comes to an end.
Bouchard will be 25 and entering his prime when he’s up for a new deal. If Sanderson can continue to improve on his stellar level of play, and Bouchard continues dominating on the offensive side of the ice, Sanderson’s contract will likely become the comparable that Bouchard and his team will use to leverage a long-term deal. Luckily for the Oilers, there’s no indication Bouchard wants to play anywhere else, which could mean he would be willing to take a slight pay cut. But he’ll still be asking for what he deserves, assuming everything pans out well for him over the next couple of seasons.
There could also be another issue. The argument could be made that if a team was willing to pay a player $8.05 million a season with only one season under their belt at 21 years old, there’s no reason the Oilers shouldn’t fork over a little more for a player who has had more experience and already proven himself to be a solid NHLer.
What Does Bouchard’s Next Contract Look Like?
Luckily, I don’t think there’s any reason to worry about Bouchard going anywhere. He seems happy with the Oilers and hasn’t shown any signs of disappointment with the organization. In that case, Edmonton might have some leverage in attempting to convince him to take a team-friendly deal to keep him around long-term and keep the team competitive for years to come.
Directly comparing Sanderson’s new deal to a potential Bouchard contract in 2025, I think Bouchard will sign a seven-year extension worth $7.65 million a season. It’s a little less than what Sanderson makes, a little team-friendlier, and likely front-loaded, meaning if he starts to fall off near the end of his contract, he can easily be traded or bought out.
I was likely Bouchard’s biggest critic exiting the 2022-23 season. This season, there are high hopes for him, but based on what he was able to accomplish last season, there is no doubt that he will continue to prove that he isn’t just riding the coattails of the world’s two best players (when they’re on the power play). At the end of the day, the Sanderson deal gives Oilers fans a glimpse of what Bouchard could get, at minimum, on the open market.
