Dobson deal could be template for Oilers D Evan Bouchard extension
That $9.5-million AAV deal that Noah Dobson signed in Montreal after his New York Islanders' trade might be a template for Evan Bouchard's Edmonton Oilers ' contract negotiation.
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Not sure Bouchard wants to sign here for eight years as Dobson did with the Habs — the feeling is he might want shorter, say, four years, to see where the salary cap goes — but these are similar, offensive-minded defencemen. Same right-shot, same age, 25, same draft year in 2018. Bouchard went 10th, Dobson 12th.
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Virtually the same stats in league play.
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Bouchard has played 347 Oiler games with 238 points.
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Dobson has played 388 New York Islander games with 230 points, with nowhere near the calibre of Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl to pass to.
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Now, of course, Bouchard is a much better playoff performer, with 72 points the past three seasons, which probably means he should be in the $10 million range.
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But, we'll see.
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We get it that the Islanders are into a rebuild but not sure why they would feel the need to so quickly move their best defenceman, Dobson, albeit coming off an off-year with 39 points, for the underwhelming return of third-line winger Emil Heineman and the 16th and 17th overall picks in the draft Friday — draft picks likely three years away from being ready for the NHL.
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As we all know, new Isles' GM Mathieu Darche, looking to make a splash, is trying to move way up in the first round, dangling both picks to get Long Island native centre James Hagens. He's heavily desired by their owner Jon Ledecky.
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Bottom line in all of this:
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Who trades 25-year-old right-shot defencemen with almost 400 NHL games?
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Clearly Darche feels the first-overall pick Matthew Schaefer can replace Dobson, and he probably can, but immediately? The Isles have a very average back end today and they didn't get a veteran defenceman back in the trade for Dobson or even farmhand Logan Mailloux, Habs' top prospect defenceman.
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Dobson could play right side with Sherwood Park's Kaiden Guhle in Montreal's top pair, and now the Habs have two power-play threats from the back end with Dobson and rookie-of-the-year Lane Hutson.
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Trent Frederic made it clear at his post-playoff Oilers availability that, while he's played left and right wing in Boston and here after his trade, he really wants to give centre a shot, and the Oilers probably think the same, as long-range third-line centre off their eight-year contract. Maybe Frederic can be their Adam Lowry lite, a don't-mess-with-me centre like the Winnipeg Jets' captain, who can score 15 to 20 goals and also work in a shutdown role and in a penalty-killing rotation.
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Vancouver Sun
44 minutes ago
- Vancouver Sun
Martin St. Louis has options on how to use new Canadien Noah Dobson
Now that the Canadiens have acquired defenceman Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders the question is how will they use him? Head coach Martin St. Louis will definitely have some options with a top four on the blue line that now includes Dobson, Lane Hutson , Mike Matheson and Kaiden Guhle . Dobson is the only one of those four who shoots right. The third pairing — unless more moves are made before the start of next season — will likely have Alexandre Carrier , who shoots right, playing with either Arber Xhekaj or Jayden Struble , who both shoot left. 'I'd leave that to the coaching staff how they want to do it,' general manager Kent Hughes said after acquiring the 25-year-old Dobson from the New York Islanders in exchange for the 16th and 17th overall picks at Friday night's NHL Draft, along with 23-year-old forward Emil Heineman. 'But I think you've got an elite puck-moving defenceman with some size (6-foot-4 and 200 pounds) and range in terms of how he defends. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'I may have my own ideas, but they're probably not as relevant as Marty's once you get behind the bench,' Hughes added about how Dobson might be used. 'So I wouldn't want to kind of speak for him. But, obviously, we gave up a lot and signed him for significant money, so we're expecting him to play a pretty big role for us.' Dobson, who could have become a restricted free agent on July 1, agreed to an eight-year, US$76-million contract with an annual salary-cap hit of US$9.5 million. St. Louis could decide to play Dobson with Hutson — another offensive-minded defenceman — or put him with Guhle, who is more of a defensive, physical defenceman. Whatever St. Louis decides, the addition of Dobson should cut down on the ice time Hutson and Matheson logged last season. Matheson led the Canadiens with an average of 25:05 of ice time per game — which ranked seventh in the NHL — while Hutson was second on the team with 22:44. Dobson, a native of Summerside, P.E.I., finished last season with 10-29-39 totals in 71 games to go along with a minus-16, while averaging 23:16 of ice time per game on an Islanders team that was hit hard by injuries. The previous season, he had 10-60-70 totals and was plus-12 with 24 of his points (including one goal) coming on the power play. Hughes said he had been on the phone almost all his waking hours over the last three weeks speaking with general managers from other teams and learned this week Dobson could be available. He spoke with new Islanders GM Mathieu Darche and received permission to speak with Dobson's agent about a new contract. Hughes noted the Canadiens did a lot of homework on Dobson, watching video of him in action and speaking with people about his character and how he would fit in the locker room. Hughes added the Canadiens had been accumulating draft picks over the last three years to put themselves in a position to pay what was needed to get a player like Dobson if he became available. Hughes also pointed out it's not often a player with the skill and experience of Dobson becomes available at age 25 with the ability to sign him through the prime years of his career. 'I wouldn't describe Noah as an overly physical defender,' Hughes said. 'I think he defends with his feet and with his reach and range. 'His ability to retrieve pucks and kind of spring the offence for us was a big piece,' Hughes added. 'We see how Lane's done that for us this year. We're confident … we did a lot of homework on him. (Spoke with) a lot of people that have coached him.' Now it's going to be St. Louis's turn to coach Dobson and he definitely has some interesting options for how to use him.
Montreal Gazette
an hour ago
- Montreal Gazette
Martin St. Louis has options on how to use new Canadien Noah Dobson
By Now that the Canadiens have acquired defenceman Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders the question is how will they use him? Head coach Martin St. Louis will definitely have some options with a top four on the blue line that now includes Dobson, Lane Hutson, Mike Matheson and Kaiden Guhle. Dobson is the only one of those four who shoots right. The third pairing — unless more moves are made before the start of next season — will likely have Alexandre Carrier, who shoots right, playing with either Arber Xhekaj or Jayden Struble, who both shoot left. 'I'd leave that to the coaching staff how they want to do it,' general manager Kent Hughes said after acquiring the 25-year-old Dobson from the New York Islanders in exchange for the 16th and 17th overall picks at Friday night's NHL Draft, along with 23-year-old forward Emil Heineman. 'But I think you've got an elite puck-moving defenceman with some size (6-foot-4 and 200 pounds) and range in terms of how he defends. 'I may have my own ideas, but they're probably not as relevant as Marty's once you get behind the bench,' Hughes added about how Dobson might be used. 'So I wouldn't want to kind of speak for him. But, obviously, we gave up a lot and signed him for significant money, so we're expecting him to play a pretty big role for us.' Dobson, who could have become a restricted free agent on July 1, agreed to an eight-year, US$76-million contract with an annual salary-cap hit of US$9.5 million. St. Louis could decide to play Dobson with Hutson — another offensive-minded defenceman — or put him with Guhle, who is more of a defensive, physical defenceman. Whatever St. Louis decides, the addition of Dobson should cut down on the ice time Hutson and Matheson logged last season. Matheson led the Canadiens with an average of 25:05 of ice time per game — which ranked seventh in the NHL — while Hutson was second on the team with 22:44. Dobson, a native of Summerside, P.E.I., finished last season with 10-29-39 totals in 71 games to go along with a minus-16, while averaging 23:16 of ice time per game on an Islanders team that was hit hard by injuries. The previous season, he had 10-60-70 totals and was plus-12 with 24 of his points (including one goal) coming on the power play. Hughes said he had been on the phone almost all his waking hours over the last three weeks speaking with general managers from other teams and learned this week Dobson could be available. He spoke with new Islanders GM Mathieu Darche and received permission to speak with Dobson's agent about a new contract. Hughes noted the Canadiens did a lot of homework on Dobson, watching video of him in action and speaking with people about his character and how he would fit in the locker room. Hughes added the Canadiens had been accumulating draft picks over the last three years to put themselves in a position to pay what was needed to get a player like Dobson if he became available. Hughes also pointed out it's not often a player with the skill and experience of Dobson becomes available at age 25 with the ability to sign him through the prime years of his career. 'I wouldn't describe Noah as an overly physical defender,' Hughes said. 'I think he defends with his feet and with his reach and range. 'His ability to retrieve pucks and kind of spring the offence for us was a big piece,' Hughes added. 'We see how Lane's done that for us this year. We're confident … we did a lot of homework on him. (Spoke with) a lot of people that have coached him.' Now it's going to be St. Louis's turn to coach Dobson and he definitely has some interesting options for how to use him.
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
Mitchell throws two TD passes, earns 100th CFL win as Ticats beat Alouettes 35-17
Hamilton Tiger-Cats quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell (19) looks to pass during first half CFL football game action against the Montreal Alouettes in Hamilton, Ont. on Friday, June 27, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Peter Power HAMILTON — Bo Levi Mitchell couldn't wait to celebrate his 100th career CFL victory. So after the final question was asked about his milestone win and 35-17 victory against the Montreal Alouettes on Friday, the 35-year-old quarterback remarked with a smile, 'Okay, let's drink.' The two-time Grey Cup winner and two-time Most Outstanding Player reached the century mark in his 144th start to become the fastest to 100 wins, bettering Ron Lancaster's 100 wins in 149 starts. Mitchell also moved into a tie for ninth on the CFL all-time list with Matt Dunigan. The Ticats pivot claimed he didn't start thinking about making history until 20 seconds remained. 'That's not the reason I still play,' Mitchell said. 'It's for the moment afterwards in the locker room.' The Tiger-Cats' first victory in three starts in 2025 was an emotional one. First-year general manager Ted Goveia, who recently was diagnosed with esophageal cancer, registered his first CFL win as a GM and was awarded the game ball. Also, 24-year-old linebacker Devin Veresuk spoke about his successful first CFL start. The native of Windsor turned the game in Hamilton's favour with a 36-yard pick-six late in the third quarter. 'The ball just happened to magically appear in my hands,' said Veresuk, who snared his interception after Montreal QB McLeod Bethel-Thompson bounced off his intended receiver Travis Theis. 'Thank God I didn't drop it. I heard my teammates say, 'Get out of there.' So I just turned around, saw green grass and didn't stop.' Veresuk recalled he only had one interception return for a touchdown in his time at the University of Windsor. He was pleased about 15 family members and friends made the trip from Windsor to witness his heroics. 'This is probably the happiest I've been outside of this football game,' Veresuk said. 'I love it here. So I can't complain.' Besides his defensive touchdown, Veresuk made a team-leading eight tackles before 20,911 at Tim Hortons Field. Another Canadian in Johnny Augustine of Welland, Ont., contributed to Mitchell's evening. With running back Greg Bell out with a calf injury, Augustine ran for 49 yards on 15 carries and caught three passes for 63 yards. The University of Guelph product was a significant performer in the second quarter when a Hamilton drive resulted in a one-yard touchdown pass from Mitchell to Kenny Lawler. Augustine was good for a 39-yard catch and run and an 18-yard run to set up Hamilton's first touchdown. Mitchell completed passes to nine different receivers, completing 25 of 31 for 247 yards. Bethel-Thompson started in place of injured starter Davis Alexander (hamstring). The Alouettes pivot completed 24 of 41 for 203 yards with a touchdown, two interceptions and a fumble that resulted in a touchdown recovery from Hamilton defensive lineman Julian Howsare with 2:22 remaining. The Alouettes (3-1) began the second half with an eight-play, 45-yard drive, resulting in a 12-yard field goal from Jose Maltos to cut the home side's lead to 8-7. The Ticats (1-2) answered with a 37-yard field goal from Marc Liegghio and a four-point advantage. Alouettes defensive back Najee Murray twice made goal-line tackles late in the first half to pressure the Ticats into a third-and-one situation before the Lawler touchdown. The Ticats have four straight wins following a bye week after going three for three in 2024. Up next Tiger-Cats: Travel to meet the rival Toronto Argonauts on Friday. Alouettes: Play host to the British Columbia Lions on Saturday, July 5. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 27, 2025.
