The Jack Eichel Saga Comes to an End
It was in the early morning of November 4th, 2021 when news swept across the league that the Jack Eichel saga in Buffalo FINALLY came to an end.
Via Darren Dreger, The Vegas Golden Knights acquired F Jack Eichel & a 2023 3rd Round Pick from The Buffalo Sabres in Exchange for Forwards Alex Tuch & Peyton Krebs + a 2021 1st Round Pick & a 2023 3rd Round Pick.
Vegas’ Outlook Post Eichel Trade
This trade once again shows the power that the Vegas Golden Knights have with landing one of the game’s best young athletes that is under team control for the next 5 years. Though they continue constrict their financial flexibility, the Knights are ALL-IN (if they weren’t already) for a potential Stanley Cup Championship. With injuries galore, the Golden Knights will need to have a strong showing before the NHL’s Olympic break as Eichel is “likely” to return after that. If Vegas is in the Top 3 of the Pacific Division after 2/22/2022, Jack Eichel will play a huge role with the possibility of guys like Mark Stone & Max Pacioretty being healthy for Vegas as well.
Vegas’ Projected Lineup When Healthy:
Pacioretty - Eichel - Stone
Marchessault - Karlsson - Smith
Dadonov - Stephenson - Patrick
Janmark - Roy - Carrier
Martinez - Pietrangelo
McNabb - Theodore
Hague - Whitecloud
Buffalo’s Outlook Post Eichel Trade
For Buffalo, the saga finally comes to an end and no longer have to deal with the media kerfuffle around Eichel. They do however have to live with the fact of “What Could Have Been” with their former 2nd overall pick & former team captain. That isn’t to negate the potential compensation that they’re getting from Vegas in this trade. Krebs has been an underrated prospect who projects to be a Top 6 player in the league & could be one of the focal pieces in Buffalo’s young roster. Tuch is definitely the headliner for the Sabres coming over from Vegas, who is not only a New York native but is coming off a strong showing with the Knights after coming over from Minnesota in the expansion draft. Though many give Buffalo more fault than credit, they do have something brewing with potential stars just waiting to break out.