Montreal Canadiens: No Guarantee That Jake Evans Makes The Team

Montreal Canadiens center Jake Evans has been a great story for the Habs. After being drafted 207th overall in 2014, the expectations could not have been lower.

Evans was determined to defy the odds and steadily grinded his way up the ranks. From Notre Dame to Laval to his eventual arrival in Montreal, the Toronto native has always brought that resolve and it has showed in the tenacity of his play.

After debuting in the National Hockey League in 2019-20, Evans established himself as a regular in the 2020-21 season. He would be a key cog in the Habs unexpected run to the Stanley Cup Final that year and parlayed it into a three year contract extension that runs until the summer of 2025.

His future with the club seemed very secure as Evans was on the few bright spots in the debacle that was 2021-22, tallying career highs with 13 goals and 16 assists in 72 games.

However coming off a down year in which he managed just two goals in 54 games this past campaign, Evans has already reached a pivotal point in his career. His spot on the roster is no longer safe, far from it in fact.

With the return of Sean Monahan and the acquisition of Alex Newhook, the Canadiens have never been deeper at the center ice position. They also took a flier on first round bust Lias Andersson and have a talented crop of young forwards coming into camp that will be challenging for full-time roles. All this adds up to more pressure than ever for Evans to have a strong start to the season.

Another factor in Evans’ future with the club is that he is a product of the previous management. It was Marc Bergevin and company that drafted him, developed him and signed him to that contract. The loyalty that may have existed before is not the same from Jeff Gorton and Kent Hughes. At 27 years old, Evans is not necessarily the right age either for when the Canadiens hope to enter their competitive window.

While all that sounds daunting for Evans, somebody still needs to come in and beat him out for a role on this team and he enters September in the pole position for the fourth line center job.

His biggest competition at training camp could be Andersson. In terms of draft pedigree the two couldn’t be more diametrically opposed. Evans was a 7th round selection while Andersson was the 7th overall selection. Evans has the experience while Andersson has the potential.

Evans being a holdover from the Bergevin regime will not help him in this regard either as it was Gorton who picked Andersson when he was with the Rangers. I believe that Andersson will be given every opportunity to win the 4C job. It shapes up to be a true battle that could come down to whoever is better suited to play a situational role on the penalty kill and in the faceoff circle.

Fortunately for Evans he can also play the wing very effectively which gives him another avenue to being in the final 23.

Even if Evans makes the opening night roster, which I believe he will, it could only be temporary with the imminent return of Christian Dvorak looming. The Habs incumbent third line center is nursing an injury and is not expected to be ready for the beginning of the season but should be back shortly thereafter.

Further complicating matters for Evans is that up and coming forward Jesse Ylonen is no longer waiver exempt. Outside of Juraj Slafkovsky, who the Canadiens seem adamant about keeping on the NHL roster, there are no other options that can go back and forth from Laval freely without being exposed.

The competition against him will be fierce and if Evans hopes to stick around with the Canadiens for the sunnier days ahead, he will need to be at his best because for the first time in a while being a part of this team is not a foregone conclusion.

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