April 23, 2025, Los Angeles, California, USA: EVAN BOUCHARD of the NHL, Eishockey Herren, USA s Edmonton Oilers skates with the puck during a game against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California on April 23, 2025. Los Angeles USA - ZUMAc239 20250423_zsp_c239_004 Copyright: xAlexxCavex
April 23, 2025, Los Angeles, California, USA: EVAN BOUCHARD of the NHL, Eishockey Herren, USA s Edmonton Oilers skates with the puck during a game against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California on April 23, 2025. Los Angeles USA - ZUMAc239 20250423_zsp_c239_004 Copyright: xAlexxCavex
Evan Bouchard of the Edmonton Oilers had a record-setting NHL season, but in a massive surprise, he wasn’t named a finalist for the 2026 Norris Trophy. The NHL revealed the three finalists for the coveted award on Thursday: Rasmus Dahlin, Zach Werenski, and Cale Makar.
Notably, the James Norris Memorial Trophy is awarded to the defenseman judged to have demonstrated the greatest all-around ability at the position, as voted by the Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA).
During the 2025–26 regular season, Bouchard led all NHL defensemen with 95 points, including 21 goals and 74 assists, the highest total over 82 games. He finished 14 points ahead of the second player on the list, Zach Werenski, who recorded 81 points in 75 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets, with 22 goals and 59 assists.
Oilers’ defenseman also had a P/GP of 1.16, which was 0.08 ahead of his nearest opponent in second place.
Rasmus Dahlin had a career-high 74 points (19G / 55A) in 77 games to earn sixth place on the league’s defensemen leaderboard and could become the first winner of the Norris Trophy for the Buffalo Sabres. Two-time winner Cale Makar scored 79 points (20G / 59A) in 75 regular-season games for the Colorado Avalanche to earn his sixth straight finalist nomination.
Apart from Bouchard himself, Quinn Hughes, who played for both the Vancouver Canucks and Minnesota Wild this season, seems to be another glaring omission from the finalists for the big prize. After making 74 regular-season appearances, one-time winner Hughes scored 76 points, including seven goals and 69 assists.
Most of those points came while playing for the Wild, which made him a key component in taking them back to the playoffs within a few months of his arrival.
Oilers react to the PHWA for not picking Evan Bouchard as the Norris Trophy finalist
After the 2026 Norris Trophy finalists were announced, there was a lot of chatter around certain key players missing out on the nomination once again.
Fans are known to make their opinions heard on these kinds of major awards across sports, but in the case of Evan Bouchard in the NHL, the official X account of the Edmonton Oilers joined in.
In their post on the matter, the Oilers appeared to address the PHWA, captioning it: “This one's for you, @ThePHWA 🙃💣 #LetsGoOilers.” They alluded to their video in the post, which featured some of Bouchard’s best defensive plays from the 2025-26 season.
Known for his cool and calm demeanor, Bouchard is anything but that on the ice, with his high-risk, high-reward style of play. After scoring his first hat trick in the NHL in January this year against the Washington Capitals at home, the 26-year-old wasn’t over the top in his postgame comments.
He said, “I guess that’s kind of how I’ve always been. I try to stay even keel.”
“The highs and lows of the game are definitely a thing, but as long as you can keep it even keel, it usually works out for the best,” Bouchard added.
Whether the Oilers’ defenseman becomes a finalist for the Norris Trophy is anyone’s guess, but he is very likely to take his game to the next level in the next few seasons.
Written by
Arjun Sharma
Edited by
Sahil Prashar