With all of the Montreal Canadiens’ centre prospects, Jake Evans has managed to spend most of his time in the shadow of others. Prospects like Ryan Poehling, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Nick Suzuki grabbed the headlines while Evans was busy putting together a solid NCAA and then rookie season in the AHL. On a Rocket team that struggled to find its footing last season, Evans was a big bright spot, delivering a fantastic season and re-inserting himself in the discussion of the top prospects in the organization. Everything was lining up for Evans to take another big step forward as the Rocket reloaded once again with new prospects and talented veterans alike.
And then it took 18 games, well over a month, for Evans to record his first goal of the season … on an empty net. It was that empty net though, and the reaction from his head coach Joël Bouchard, that seemed to flip the script and bring Evans out of his brutal slump.
Find someone in life who supports you like Joel Bouchard does Jake Evans pic.twitter.com/egMmg4hjkU
— Scott Matla (@scottmatla) December 11, 2019
For all the struggles, and all the missed chances, Bouchard didn’t quit on Evans this year. And that made all the difference. In past years, slumping players were left on an island so to speak. Sometimes they worked it out, sometimes they didn’t. Evans was given the chances he needed to work his way out of his early-season slump and he did so in a big way.
In a trend that is going to appear a lot in these reviews, the Rocket forward corps was shuffled, then reshuffled, then thrown in the trash and reshuffled one more time over the course of this past season. Between injuries, call ups and trades, the offence never quite looked the same for more than a game or two, but one consistent face in the lineup was Evans who had missed time the previous year. In fact, he missed 11 games total but that was due to a well-earned NHL call up late in the season.
While his playmaking remained his strength, Evans managed to increase his goal total in less games, which is a bit surprising given his month-long goalless drought. He was a driving force in the Rocket top six, and despite rotating linemates, he managed to make it work every single night. He was able to find goals in a variety of ways, from driving to the net to utilizing his wrist shot to great effect at both the AHL and NHL levels.
Jake Evans snipes his 11th of the year while shorthanded.
Laval leads 3-2! pic.twitter.com/LLqZCG6NMF
— Scott Matla (@scottmatla) February 6, 2020
Where Evans continued to shine was in his ability to set up his teammates with regularity, but unlike Kotkaniemi, he did so without much flash. Evans remained effective in his role, finding a way to put the puck in the right spot for his linemates to create their scoring chances. His ability to click with anyone he was with was a huge boost for the Rocket, who could easily rely on Evans to help push play in the offensive zone.
Jake Evans with a nice pass and Alexandre Alain scores his fifth of the year on the power play! pic.twitter.com/kUBrKuaRRG
— Scott Matla (@scottmatla) December 5, 2019
Evans’ strong play earned him a pair of NHL call ups this season where he played 13 games, notching two goals and an assist while playing primarily in a fourth-line role for Claude Julien. It’s hard to make a full judgement on his NHL time, given the small sample and relative quality of his linemates, but his call up is a big step forward for the former seventh-round pick.
For next season the goal is very clear for Evans — transition into a more permanent NHL role, likely as a major piece of the Canadiens bottom six. While he is a restricted free agent, his growth and glowing praise from Bouchard all but assures that Evans will be back in the fold for Montreal next year.
Heading into his third professional season there are some small things for Evans to work on to fully round out his budding game. First and foremost is avoiding his early-season slumps again, given that he’s going to be counted on in a big way if he’s in Laval again, and the competition for a spot in Montreal is sure to be tight. The improvements in his game are there and going into next year at the age of 24, and with plenty of experience from his first two professional seasons, gives Evans a big leg up on the other prospects pushing for the same spot.
Even if he doesn’t claim the NHL spot right away the expectation is simple — be a leader for the Laval Rocket once again. Alex Belzile and Laurent Dauphin are already re-signed, putting Evans back with them will provide a great leadership core for the newly-arrived Jesse Ylönen and Arsen Khisamutdinov, among others. Regardless of where he ends up, Jake Evans is sure to put in a solid effort, something he’s done every year since he was picked 207th overall in 2014.
There’s been injuries, brutal slumps and plenty of frustration across the first two years of his career, but with the support from his coach the young centre hasn’t let that slow him down in the slightest. Next season is another big one for Evans, and given his progression in the professional ranks so far, it’s likely to be another big step forward for him as well.
