Canadiens A New Evans Contract Is Just A Matter Of Time

According to TVA Sports' Renaud Lavoie, it's just a matter of time before the Montreal Canadiens ink Jake Evans to a new contract.

Jake Evans is not the first player to have a career-year when his contract is about to expire, but according to TVA Sports' insider Renaud Lavoie, the center had done enough to impress Montreal Canadiens GM Kent Hughes. 

Lavoie reports that it's only a matter of time before the Canadiens and Jake Evans reach an agreement on the terms of a new contract. It will be interesting to see what kind of term and money Hughes gives to Evans. 

The 28-year-old pivot was drafted in the seventh round by the Canadiens at the 2014 draft and played four years at Notre-Dame in the NCAA before joining the Laval Rocket for the best part of two seasons. Then, he made the jump to the NHL and never looked back. 

Evans has never been a big points producer for the Habs, but he has exploded this season and through 39 games, he has 23 points, just six short of his most productive season. 

The center is however much more than points for the Canadiens, he's a Swiss Army knife kind of player who can slot in anywhere in your lineup and will always give you the same level of effort. He's also a penalty kill specialist and a reliable option at the faceoff dot. 

Signing Evans is the right decision, as long as the term and money are right. The Canadiens have a few good young centers in the pipeline who's ceiling should be higher than Evans, meaning they should overtake him on the depth chart eventually and that's something Hughes will no doubt keep in mind. With his recent performance, Evans will probably be after a contract worth more than Brett Howden's. 

Someone like Owen Beck can benefit from learning from Evans for a year or so, but if he pans out, he'll leapfrog him in the lineup in short order. However, prospects are just that, prospects, there are no guarantees and considering the roller coaster Kirby Dach and Alex Newhook have been on, it wouldn't hurt the Habs depth to lock up another center. 

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