Player Discussion Jake Evans (Part II)

[morhilane]

That’s the ultimate question - how do HuGo evaluate Evans? 4th or 3rd liner who is entering his prime?

Evans is presently C the 3rd line w Anderson & Gallagher.. and without a doubt is developing into a very effective PK / late game asset which means he’s highly valued by MSL

I’d venture a guess that HuGo extend Evans

In TOI at 5v5, Evans's line is currently the 2nd line.

 

[OneSharpMarble]

Evans is exactly The kind of player you need in your bottom 6 to be successful.

 

[Redux91]

Yeah even before the goals this weekend
Been one of our better players this year
Proud of him

+ he's a Center
Kirby dying on face offs again and playing Wing temporarily
And who knows WHAT the HELL Dvoraks doing out there on the ice if he sucks at face offs now

So we're obviously thin, and after we kick out Dvo we're thinner
So yeah dont think Evans is going anywhere anytime soon
4 years x 2.75 incoming

 

[Tyson]

With Dvorak on his way out it would be wise to try and sign Jake Evans to a sensible contract. The issue is that in the pipeline you have Kapanen and Beck knocking on the door, both of whom may not be top 6 players.

 

[Rapala]

With Dvorak on his way out it would be wise to try and sign Jake Evans to a sensible contract. The issue is that in the pipeline you have Kapanen and Beck knocking on the door, both of whom may not be top 6 players.

I'm not overly impressed with Kapanen thus far.

 

[Tyson]

I'm not overly impressed with Kapanen thus far.

He shows flashes. He played primarily on larger rinks, he is new to NA, I see alot of good things so far. Personally I would rather have him in Sweden playing 20 minutes a night and hopefully that happens soon.

 

[yianik]

I don't think Evans looks a anything under $2.5M and under $3M I think he is safe to try free agency. Now at $3M with a bit of term maybe we get there.

 

[Archijerej]

I don't see us signing him. I think he will be dealt at the deadline for a good return.

Too many young guys pushing.

I have a hard time believing the management is just going to keep replacing expiring contracts with rookies. It's a recipe for not climbing out of the basement for a very long time.

Evans might not be the one we sign, but replacing half of our center line with the likes of Kapanen and Beck is certainly not an indication of playoff aspirations for next season, especially if there are still some lingering questions about Dach's ability to lead the 2nd line.

The state of our defense group, consisting of so many inexperienced players, should provide a hint here.

 

[salbutera]

What a terrific 7th round pick…

 

[HuGort]

A good comparable is Casey Cizikas on the Islanders. Cizikas signed at age 29 I believe... 6 years at $2.5M. That was in 2021 so inflation needs to be factored in.

$3M-$3.5M AAV is the right spot IMO. Depends on term

I wanted to sign Cizikas instead of trading for Dvorak. Cizikas had good playoff for Islanders. Keep our draft picks

 

[WinterLion]

I have a hard time believing the management is just going to keep replacing expiring contracts with rookies. It's a recipe for not climbing out of the basement for a very long time.

Evans might not be the one we sign, but replacing half of our center line with the likes of Kapanen and Beck is certainly not an indication of playoff aspirations for next season, especially if there are still some lingering questions about Dach's ability to lead the 2nd line.

The state of our defense group, consisting of so many inexperienced players, should provide a hint here.

Evans is UFA and will need to be paid as such and I'm just not sold that he is a starting 3C on a contender. I think ultimately management will be looking for a 1C that will push everyone down a spot and they will have the assets to trade for one if they don't think they have someone internally...

I do actually really like Evans, I just think he is a better fit on a different team. He will have some say in this also. He may want to play somewhere where he can be the 3C... I don't think we can or should promise him that.

 

[Benstheman]

I’m ok with 3-4 years at 2,8-3M$.

 

[HabzSauce]

Don't see him getting 5 years in UFA. Maybe Max 4.

Max id pay for him without looking at Habs payroll is 3x3.5M. He might be a guy we want to hang on to

 

[HuGort]

I would ask for a first. If I could get it I move him. If not wait until deadline.

By then Laine be back and Dach be at center Move Newhook back to third line. Dvorak centers fourth line. Either ABB or Roy be up

 

[schwang26]

Evans is exactly The kind of player you need in your bottom 6 to be successful.

I’ve never understood the hate on him. Besides the lack of goal scoring, he’s an incredibly hard working and smart bottom 6 centre man. Armia gets the same kind of hate. It’s unwarranted.

 

[schwang26]

I would ask for a first. If I could get it I move him. If not wait until deadline.

By then Laine be back and Dach be at center Move Newhook back to third line. Dvorak centers fourth line. Either ABB or Roy be up

I can’t see the Habs trading him unless his demands are bonkers. They just don’t have the centre depth yet. They made similar mistakes with Eller and Danault. Unless they plan on signing a free agent or trading. I know they need to revamp the bottom 6, but Evans maybe should be a part of that.

 

[Rapala]

I’ve never understood the hate on him. Besides the lack of goal scoring, he’s an incredibly hard working and smart bottom 6 centre man. Armia gets the same kind of hate. It’s unwarranted.

It's not hard to understand when you look at our PK up and until the last 25 games.
A 30 point guy who isn't moving the needle defensively is what we were looking at.
The role he has now is one he seems to thrive at and there is no reason to change it even when everyone is healthy again.

 

[schwang26]

It's not hard to understand when you look at our PK up and until the last 25 games.
A 30 point guy who isn't moving the needle defensively is what we were looking at.
The role he has now is one he seems to thrive in and there is no reason to change it even when everyone is healthy again.

I think we have to ask “what’s different “? Is it mostly on him? He’s the same player. Your pk is going to struggle during the early part of a rebuild. Maybe annother year of experience has allowed them to have success? It is only 9 games. I’m sure they won’t hang on to a top 5 spot anyway.

 

[Archijerej]

Evans is UFA and will need to be paid as such and I'm just not sold that he is a starting 3C on a contender. I think ultimately management will be looking for a 1C that will push everyone down a spot and they will have the assets to trade for one if they don't think they have someone internally...

I do actually really like Evans, I just think he is a better fit on a different team. He will have some say in this also. He may want to play somewhere where he can be the 3C... I don't think we can or should promise him that.

I'm not sure Evans will be the right option for precisely the reasons you named. He might price himself out of Montreal.

One way, or the other, we will have to ensure that we have proven players filling the 1-3C spots next season.

 

[Rapala]

I think we have to ask “what’s different “? Is it mostly on him? He’s the same player. Your pk is going to struggle during the early part of a rebuild. Maybe annother year of experience has allowed them to have success? It is only 9 games. I’m sure they won’t hang on to a top 5 spot anyway.

I think Armia's level of engagement was the original catalyst.
They got on a roll and are still on it.

 

[dcyhabs]

I’ve never understood the hate on him. Besides the lack of goal scoring, he’s an incredibly hard working and smart bottom 6 centre man. Armia gets the same kind of hate. It’s unwarranted.

He's a good player, and if he can handle a top 9 spot all is good. The trend is for the fourth line to be pretty physical, and Evans isn't. I doubt anyone criticizes his play in terms of defense or points on the fourth line.

He's playing higher in the lineup so we'll see what his ceiling is.

 

[Team_Spirit]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1857978934849130692

 

[JianYang]

He's a good player, and if he can handle a top 9 spot all is good. The trend is for the fourth line to be pretty physical, and Evans isn't. I doubt anyone criticizes his play in terms of defense or points on the fourth line.

He's playing higher in the lineup so we'll see what his ceiling is.

He will have value at the deadline, and its a tricky decision for the habs. Nice to see him come off an 82 game season after what he's gone through so far.

I know people are down on dach right now but here's another example how it can take time for someone to get their game back. At one point, Evans didn't even look like he belonged in the league anymore.

 

[Rapala]

Rumors are this is the guy we are getting the most interest in.
Are people seriously thinking that this player is critical for our rebuild?
I would definitely move him if there is a bidding war it would be a mistake to re-up before we let it percolate.

We need Dach to get his game together and then I expect we would call up Beck if we move Evans.
Once this plays out we can always resign him if we deem it necessary for the following season if the price isn't too exorbitant.
I'm fairly confident with Kapanen and Beck in the fold we have good coverage for the bottom.

If our long term success hinges on keeping this player we are in the weeds for sure.
We are so far down the rabbit hole as far as this season goes we need to be focused on development IMO.
I also don't think we are a playoff team next season but we might try for "The Mix"

 

[SlafySZN]

Rumors are this is the guy we are getting the most interest in.
Are people seriously thinking that this player is critical for our rebuild?
I would definitely move him if there is a bidding war it would be a mistake to re-up before we let it percolate.

We need Dach to get his game together and then I expect we would call up Beck if we move Evans.
Once this plays out we can always resign him if we deem it necessary for the following season if the price isn't too exorbitant.
I'm fairly confident with Kapanen and Beck in the fold we have good coverage for the bottom.

If our long term success hinges on keeping this player we are in the weeds for sure.
We are so far down the rabbit hole as far as this season goes we need to be focused on development IMO.
I also don't think we are a playoff team next season but we might try for "The Mix"

I don’t want them to keep Evans at all cost especially depending on his ask for his next contract. Depend also on what they could get for him. But he’s a good stop gap between the younger guys and the present. Some vets are still needed.