The Oilers' standout blueliner secured fourth place and multiple first-place votes, signaling his arrival as an elite force despite trailing the top-tier trio of Werenski, Makar, and Dahlin.
If you’re a fan of the Edmonton Oilers and wondering how Evan Bouchard fared in the Norris Trophy race, the answer is: pretty well — just not quite at the top tier yet.
Zach Werenski took home the award after a dominant season, finishing well ahead of Cale Makar and Rasmus Dahlin in voting. Still, Bouchard quietly put together an impressive showing of his own, finishing fourth overall with 593 voting points.
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He even earned 12 first-place votes, which shows he’s getting real recognition as an elite offensive defenseman.
Is Bouchard all the way there in terms of people recognizing his importance? Maybe not. There was a noticeable gap between him and the top three. Werenski and Makar, in particular, were on another level from the rest of the group.
Still, for Edmonton and Bouchard, this is encouraging.
The Oilers defenseman gets a bad rep around the NHL, and often from Oilers fans, for being "one-dimensional." It isn't accurate. Being as elite as he is offensively, it's easy to put a label on him. It doesn't help when he is prone to the odd ten-bell turnover. Still, Bouchard isn’t just producing — he’s among the best in the NHL and firmly in the conversation now.
If you look at the fact he finished more than 200 points higher than Lane Hutson and more than 300 points higher than Quinn Hughes, that says something.
If he can have a repeat performance in 2026-27, adding just a little more to his all-around game, he will seriously challenge for the Norris, not just be part of the conversation.
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