Bouchard will get the night off on Thursday as the Oilers opt to give him the night off to rest ahead of their playoff run. Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Zach Hyman, Evander Kane, Connor McDavid, and Mattias Ekholm will all join him in the press box tonight.
Bouchard was a game-time decision on Monday due to an illness he's been battling since Saturday. With Bouchard out, the Oilers will go with the standard 12 forwards, six defenseman formation--a rarity under new head coach Jay Woodcroft.
Bouchard left Saturday's game vs. the Canadiens due to an illness and he hasn't fully recovered. Bouchard will be a game-time decision and the Oilers will go to 12 forwards/six defensemen if Bouchard can't go--Kyle Turris will likely be the No.12 forward in that case.
Bouchard was scratched Saturday vs. the Maple Leafs but is expected to replace Kris Russell in the lineup on Monday. Bouchard, who has one goal and three assists in 11 games this season, will skate on the third pairing with Ethan Bear.
Bouchard was the No.10 overall pick in 2018 and appeared in seven games with the Oilers in 2018-19. The 21-year-old, who had 36 points (7G / 29A) in 54 games with Bakersfield (AHL) last year, will make his season debut vs. the Senators and is expected to skate on the third pair with Kris Russell.
With Adam Larsson going on LTIR, replacing Ethan Bear with Bouchard increases the Oilers' LTIR pool. Bouchard was close to making the team out of training camp and earns his first call-up because of some salary cap manipulation.
Bouchard, 19, was the 10th overall pick in this summer’s draft and picked up one goal while averaging 12:21 TOI/GM in seven NHL games. Bouchard was impressive, posting a 55.4 CorsiFor% and +11.0 CF% rel, thanks to a 64.3% Offensive-Zone start percentage. Bouchard returns to the London Knights, where he led the team with 87 points (25G / 62A) in 67 games last year.
Bouchard has yet to record a point while averaging just 12:59 TOI/GM in the first three games of his NHL career. Bouchard will be replaced by Matt Benning and take a look from the press box tonight.
Bouchard has good size (6-foot-2, 192 lbs.) and fantastic mobility. The London Knights captain led all OHL defenseman in points (87) and assists (62) while finishing second in goals (25). There are some questions about his defensive game, but overall he is a well-rounded defenseman with high-end offensive skills.
