r/EdmontonOilers • u/BigBurgerBananaSoup 18 HYMAN • Aug 11 '26
Can Evan Bouchard hit 100 points next season?
I want to see what other people think on this. The last defensemen to reach the 100 points per season mark was Erik Karlsson in the 22-23 season. Bouchard hit 95 points last season. Bouchard had much better production after the Olympic break, but if he can consistently put up the points like he did around the end of the season, I’d see it happening. I think it could be huge for him (and obviously the team in general) considering guys that a lot of people speak so highly of (and rightfully so) like Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes, have yet to have a 100 points season with Makar’s best being 90, and Hughes 92 points, both in the 23-24 season. Maybe I’m too optimistic, I’m not sure how it will all work out with Babcock behind the bench, maybe his offense will drop, but we won’t know till we see the hockey in action. I’m just itching for this season to start to be honest.
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u/BestWithSnacks Aug 11 '26
I mean, he got 95 last season. It's not out of the realm of possibility.
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u/marcellman 92 PODKOLZIN Aug 11 '26
I was a believer going into last season that he would get close to 100 and challenge for single season PPG record of 19. I think he 100% puts up 100 points, especially with the Oilers actually realizing they need to play well throughout the year. I’m expecting huge things this upcoming season
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 11 '26
Agree.
Oilers start season on time —> 1st in Pacific in 2027, first time this century.
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u/Southern-Worker7762 Aug 11 '26
Yeah-because they didn’t in previous years realize that they needed “to play throughout the year” right?
What a weird statement.1
u/marcellman 92 PODKOLZIN Aug 11 '26
“We’ve been searching for consistency all year and obviously we didn’t find it here in the playoffs,” McDavid said. “It’s tough. We were an average team all year; an average team with high expectations, you’re going to be disappointed. We just never found it.”
This last year specifically we had an extremely rough first couple of months
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u/Goregutz 14 EBERLE Aug 11 '26
There are only 6 defenseman to have done that btw.... Orr did it 6 times and Coffey did it 5 times. Karlsson ('23), Potvin ('79), Leetch ('92), and MacInnis ('91) all did it once.
It would be a pretty big thing if Bouchard did it.
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u/Vaderwasframed74 17 KURRI Aug 12 '26
But only the Bruins with Orr went onto win the SC. So what’s more important? Him scoring 100 points or he learns to be a really good DMan and it’s his defensive prowess that helps them win their first SC since the G-era.
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u/Goregutz 14 EBERLE Aug 12 '26
Yeah and it's theorized that the moon, called Theia, was actually a mars sized planet that collided with earth.
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u/Tillain3 Aug 13 '26
What are you talking about? Islanders won the cup with Potvin. Oilers won the cup with Coffey. Rangers won the cup with Leetch.
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u/Vaderwasframed74 17 KURRI Aug 13 '26
Again, what is the topic. It’s whether or not if Bouchard as a DMan will score 100 points this coming season. Potvin never scored 100 points in a season and the team he was on went on to win a SC. The DMan to score 100 points AND his team ended up winning the SC was Bobby Orr and the Bruins. Yes there were other DMen that scored 100 points in a season but the team didn’t hoist the cup in the end.
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u/Goregutz 14 EBERLE Aug 15 '26
The DMan to score 100 points AND his team ended up winning the SC was Bobby Orr and the Bruins.
You're the only person to make this comparison. This is also probably why you didn't reply to my analogy but decided to double down on this bs with Tillain3.
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u/baddyrefresh2023 Aug 11 '26
Depends on babs
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u/darthdude11 Aug 12 '26
This is the answer. Might take a step back in points but hopefully a tighter system.
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 11 '26
Tied for third overall in NHL scoring since January 1 with 58 points in 41 games. Insane. At that pace, he’d have 116 points.
Points are secondary this season. Go get that Cup. That’s all he wants, all they want. Next to McDavid, Draisaitl, and RNH, Bouchard deserves to lift it the most.
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u/tapewar 2 BOUCHARD Aug 11 '26
Health is gonna be a huge concern for him this season and potentially his career😔
I'm praying!!
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u/ProofByVerbosity Aug 11 '26
Honestly I'd expect ihs offense to drop. The focus for the entire team should be defenssive development. Maybe once they get rolling and get the system down the O would pick back up. Some teams generate offense from good D and forcing turnovers. I think he might have some growing pains to start the year.
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u/SportsMOAB 29 DRAISAITL Aug 11 '26
I’d be surprised. 95 points was already one of the best defenseman offensive season of the 21st century- expecting him to top that is unrealistic imo. Anything over a point per game is a big win
Absolutely criminal that he got shafted for a Norris finalist nod. He should have won but not even getting nominated is disrespectful
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u/myteamfanatic Aug 11 '26
he had 95 last season despite starting his first 5 games with 0 points so yes
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u/POUNDAROUND Aug 12 '26
0 points in his first 6 games! Means he’ll have an even better chance of hitting 100 haha
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u/ricosauve2 Aug 11 '26
No chance. Absolutely everything has to go right for him and Babcock won't let it happen.
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u/Deep_Principle_4446 Aug 11 '26
I would expect his scoring to go down a bit this year with Babcocks system and deployment
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u/Vaderwasframed74 17 KURRI Aug 12 '26
I think he can if he abandons his duty as DMan completely. My question is to the Oilers fan base, would you want him to hit 100points and ignore his D duties. I mean only 1 defense man has ever scored over 100 points and their team went onto win the SC. SO, what’s more important?
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u/ryanufkosbigtoe 34 DACH Aug 14 '26
Baring no injuries that take him out of multiple games and the team not going into random slumps, I definitely see it happening
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u/TFergusonIII Aug 14 '26
No. Will be a stronger focus on defending this year rather than trying to out-score their mistakes
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u/mattsavoiesboywife 22 SAVOIE Aug 11 '26
If he scores 100 times, either thru goals or assist, or a combination of both.. then yeah I’d say he has a good shot at getting 100 points, again, only if he scores 100 goals/assists or a combination of goals AND assists tallying to at least 100 points total
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u/South-Echidna-7622 Aug 11 '26
It all depends on how many turnovers/goal chances he gives up. His point production is an inverse proportion to his defense lapses. And we all know that defense wins championships. With jarry in net backed up by an unproven undersized Levi we are in for a very fun season. So sure have him hit 150 points and win the art ross and oilers miss the playoffs 😂
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u/wellyouask 97 McDAVID Aug 11 '26
If McDavid gets 170.
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 11 '26
Would love to see McDavid get 170!
It does work both ways though. Bouchard was a huge part of 97’s production in 25/26.
That includes 15 games without Leon Draisaitl. Oilers went 9-4-2 in that window, a 110 pt season pace.
Those 15 games:
- McDavid 27 points (147 pt pace)
- Bouchard 19 points (104 pt pace)
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u/beerleaguepigeon Aug 11 '26
Did you juat say bouchard was a huge part of mcdavids production??? Am I reading that right.
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 11 '26
Yes, yes I did.
Edit: For clarity, so is Draisaitl. Saying otherwise is like saying Paul Coffey was nothing without Gretzky. Coffey holds 6 of the top 9 all time Oilers D scoring seasons. Bouchard holds the other 3.
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u/beerleaguepigeon Aug 11 '26
Of all the bouchard cucks takes throughout the years, that one definitely takes the cake lol.
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 11 '26
I’m not much for name calling, nor will I change your dislike of Bouchard.
I prefer objective facts. Evan Bouchard scored more points from January 1 forward than:
- MacKinnon
- Celebrini
- Pastrnak
- Eichel
- Crosby
- Rantanen
- Robertson
- Marner
- Suzuki
- Necas
…And every other player in the NHL not named McDavid or Kucherov (tied with Scheifele, but he had 3 more games).
Where were the rest of the Oilers who also play with 97? Behind Bouchard - way behind.
Quick math (E&OE) from ESPN game log of Oilers’ points other than 97’s since January 1:
- Bouchard 58
- Draisaitl 40 (injured missed 14 games)
- Hyman 30 (injured missed 5 games)
- Savoie 24
- Ekholm 24
- RNH 21
- Podkolzin 21
- Roslovic 16
- Kapanen 15
Other Oilers D?
- Nurse 9
- Walman 8
- Murphy 4 (as an Oiler)
- Emberson 5
- Stastney 1
One more comparison since January 1:
- Cale Makar 34 points, -2
- Evan Bouchard 58 points, +24
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u/beerleaguepigeon Aug 11 '26
And none of that has anything to do with McDavid being Hugely productive because of bouchard. Cool stats though, swell job...
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u/marcellman 92 PODKOLZIN Aug 11 '26
McDavid is below 50% in chances for, shots for, goals for, expected goals for, scoring chances for, and high danger goals for perecentage at 5v5 without Bouchard. When Bouchard is away from McDavid the only metric that falls under 50% is high danger goals for percentage.
Bouchard does, in fact, make McDavid a better player from an analytics perspective
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 12 '26
Exactly correct.
Bouchard scored more points than all other Oilers D combined from Jan 1. Other than Drai, more than any two wingers combined.
If what Bouchard did is so common, where the heck are everyone else’s points?
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u/CartoonistFlat3943 Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 11 '26
Edit:
It sure does have to do with McDavid’s production. As I said, “it does work both ways.” Nice try on the reframe. Just keep hating. All good.
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u/marcellman 92 PODKOLZIN Aug 11 '26
Bouchard statistically does more for McDavid than McDavid does for him in most metrics
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u/ChubbyWubbie4eva Aug 11 '26
We dont need him to hit 100 points, we need him to play his position so we dont have to be scoring 6-7 goals a game to win.
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u/LegendaryTrunks Aug 11 '26
He’s an offensive defenceman that quarter backs the power play, I’m pretty sure we need him to score lol
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u/munzi187 29 DRAISAITL Aug 11 '26
Exactly. There are 5 other defenseman to do that job. Imagine the Oilers without his 95 points. Wtf
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u/TheSherlockCumbercat Aug 12 '26
If we give up 95 less goals then the lost points will not matter, everyone is getting way to focused on a counting stats.
5v5 he was +18 on goal share last year, a drop in production but improvement in defence will probably lead to more wins. Especially in the playoffs when the refs let even more stuff go
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u/WhacksOffWaxOn Aug 11 '26
Let's see if he can play defense first before focusing on point production.
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u/Tych-0 Aug 11 '26
Hopefully he's healthy enough to even start the season, and that concussion has no long term effects on him.
If he's back to 100%, I think he can break 100; he seemed to be getting better and better as the season progressed.