Evan Bouchard’s season opener reignites Norris conversation

# What happened in the opener Evan Bouchard produced one of the most explosive single-game offensive displays by a defenceman to start the season. In Edmonton's 6-5 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks he scored three goals and finished with five points. That hat trick is the first opening-night three-goal game by a blueliner since Mark Howe in 1980.

# Why this shifts the early Norris talk It's early in the season, but the performance reinforced a trend: Bouchard has been an elite offensive defenceman over the last year. He has 93 points in his last 71 regular-season games, a scoring rate that projects to about a 110-point pace over a full schedule. Last season he posted career highs and led NHL defence scoring by a comfortable margin with 95 points.

Bookmakers are already pricing him as a contender. bet365 lists Bouchard with the third-best odds for the 2027 Norris Trophy at +650 (tied with Zach Werenski), behind Quinn Hughes (+400) and Cale Makar (+300). Those odds reflect market recognition of his offensive output and momentum.

# Track record in Norris voting and play-driving metrics Bouchard has previously finished high in Norris voting. In 2023-24 he recorded 82 points, ranked fourth among defencemen in scoring, and posted a 64 percent expected goal share while finishing fifth in the Norris race. The following season he improved his counting stats and finished fourth in voting again, receiving 12 first-place votes.

# What held him back before A recurrent issue for Bouchard has been rough starts to seasons. He began one season pointless through six games and by the end of October was on the wrong side of the scoreboard in his minutes, contributing to a negative team run in those stretches. The article cites one particularly bad outing on Long Island as a memorable low point.

Those early-season dips have affected perception in award voting. If he can avoid those slow starts and maintain the post-October level of play for a full schedule, his Norris case strengthens materially.

# Durability and availability One asset often overlooked is his availability. Since becoming an NHL player he has not missed games due to injury. The only two games he didn't play were missed for an illness in 2022 and a rest day for the regular-season finale in 2024. Among top offensive defencemen mentioned as Norris contenders, that kind of consistent availability is unusual.

# Bottom line