Oilers Reporter Claims Evan Bouchard Is In His Own Head After Being Chewed Out by Coach Paul Coffey

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Liam McCormick
November 22, 2024 (4:18 PM)

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Oilers Defenceman Evan Bouchard isn't having the best start to this season, and reporter Jason Gregor is noticing that he could be mentally struggling after some direct criticism.

Bouchard is on pace to break the NHL record for most shot attempts blocked by a defenceman.

It's a significant concern that Bouchard isn't finding ways to get pucks onto the net, and it often causes the play to turn in the other direction.

Recently, Oilers broadcaster Louie DeBrusk revealed that Coach Paul Coffey aware of Bouchard nearing this record, and that Coffey had a chat with Bouchard.

»I said, what's going on with the shin pad assassin? You can't seem to get a shot through. [Bouchard] looks at me and he goes, if I hit another shin pad, I think [Coffey] is gonna k**l me.»
- Louie DeBrusk

Since then, Bouchard's troubling trend hasn't relented. Last night was Bouchard's 6th game that had 6 shot attempts blocked, and he still leads the league in that undesirable category. Jason Gregor thinks Bouchard's confidence has taken a hit.

Bouchard's confidence does look visibly lower when he's on the ice right now. Specifically on getting shots through.

The Oilers defender is rushing shooting decisions instead of showing his usual poise to walk the blue line in search of a shooting lane. It's interesting that he's actually scoring goals at a higher pace though this year than last year.

The drop in confidence is reflected in the raw stats this year. After scoring a career high of 82 points last year, Bouchard is now on pace for only 50 points - but almost every Oilers' scoring is down too.

Evan Bouchard is a restricted free agent at the end of this season, and insiders believe he'll be signed to a long-term contract for $10M or more annually. That's a massive investment into a player, and fans want to see him play well in all areas to continually prove the worth of the upcoming major contract.

The Oilers took a light practice today after a disappointing effort against the Minnesota Wild last night, and after their next game, will get nearly a week long break before their next game.

The entire roster badly needs this upcoming break to rest, recover, and then beginning building up their game back to the standard they set last season. Right now, this Oilers team simply doesn't look as good as the iteration from last year.