Speculation: Eichel Mega Thread

[tomd]

I don't think Buffalo is hiding that there is still a neck issue.

I actually agree with you. Now if fans can just stop acting like he doesn't...

 

[DatDude44]

I understand the team concept, but you have to wonder how a team a supposedly game changer like Eichel seems to constantly regress while Teams with somewhat similar talent (Mathews, MCDavid) progress. It is certainly not all of Eichel's fault but he did play a part in the team not playing well and I think it comes down to him being a poor leader.

O'Reilly, Pietrangelo, mcdavid, mackinnon, Kucherov, Hedman, Draisaitl etc. all mange to get their team to the playoffs, Eichel never got them out of the bottom 5 except for his rookie year where they finished 23rd. Is that guy really worth the equivalent of 4 1st round picks?

He's certainly a poor leader and never should've been given the captaincy but cmon now..... Eichel's literally had to carry the weight of the entire franchise on his back..... and he's never had a team with remotely as much quality depth/talent as any of those above mentioned teams/players..... Yeah edmonton has lacked fwd depth for a very long time around mcdavid, but they still have Draisaitl, Nuge, yamamoto and a pretty decent D-core with not great and not terrible goaltending..... also I'm not saying eichel is as good as mcdavid because he's not, but purely from an on ice talent point of view eichel is a top 10 and arguable top 5 talent in the world. If he played STL, EDM,TB,TOR or dam near any other team in the NHL he would be an 85-100pt producer consistently and would make the playoffs year in and year out if he were on a team with decent coaching, decent talent around him and some lick of goaltending. The Sabres have been the biggest mess in hockey for the past decade, especially since Eichels tenure has begun(all of which are unrelated to Eichel) so many terrible coaching and GM mistakes over the years destroyed them. Kevyn Adams needs to be allowed to restart their rebuild and actually be given time to see it through. Otherwise the 2 year cycle of coaches and GM's will just continue.

 

[Beerz]

Nope No interest dealing Eichel in division

 

[HabsWhiteKnightLOL]

noty as habs fan

 

[terranraida]

Just kidding I don't give a fvck (insert meme here)

Don't be a coward and just spell it out. This ain't the 7th grade middle school library where Curse Words will get you detention.

 

[Cenzo_]

He's certainly a poor leader and never should've been given the captaincy but cmon now..... Eichel's literally had to carry the weight of the entire franchise on his back..... and he's never had a team with remotely as much quality depth/talent as any of those above mentioned teams/players..... Yeah edmonton has lacked fwd depth for a very long time around mcdavid, but they still have Draisaitl, Nuge, yamamoto and a pretty decent D-core with not great and not terrible goaltending..... also I'm not saying eichel is as good as mcdavid because he's not, but purely from an on ice talent point of view eichel is a top 10 and arguable top 5 talent in the world. If he played STL, EDM,TB,TOR or dam near any other team in the NHL he would be an 85-100pt producer consistently and would make the playoffs year in and year out if he were on a team with decent coaching, decent talent around him and some lick of goaltending. The Sabres have been the biggest mess in hockey for the past decade, especially since Eichels tenure has begun(all of which are unrelated to Eichel) so many terrible coaching and GM mistakes over the years destroyed them. Kevyn Adams needs to be allowed to restart their rebuild and actually be given time to see it through. Otherwise the 2 year cycle of coaches and GM's will just continue.

For sure Eichel was in a bad bad situation, but his character also made that situation worse it seems from an outside point of view.

 

[GhostfaceWu]

McDavid and Mathews make their team a threat, Eichel keeps his team in the dumpters

Get ready to miss the playoffs next season and we can all gather in this thread to call all of the habs pieces non gamers.

 

[Ace]

The problem has never been knowing there is a neck issue. It has always been about how it will be treated. He wants a treatment the team isn't going to sign off on. That does not mean it is the only treatment or surgical option that exists. He is not the first person to have his injury. He is the first hockey player to want a new kind of surgery that isn't proven he can be the same from. That does not mean that a surgery does not exist that does. Or that he won't immediately drop his unpopular request for a riskier surgery if another team asked. But he certainly won't for Buffalo.

 

[HabsForHire]

Huge no for this Habs fan, Eichel may have skills but the guy is not a gamer. Eichel never won any major tournaments in his career. A guy with such skills should be able to take his teams to the next level which he as failed immensely in Buffalo, a team that was actually playing better without him this year.

Haha what a horrible take, i do this 100 times out of a 100. Eichel is elite and the habs have needed a game breaker for like 30 years

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

Nobody has said either of these things......

Bern clearly posted Strome + 3 7th which turn into 1sts.

 

[AirGut]

Bern clearly posted Strome + 3 7th which turn into 1sts.

And Bern is well off from reality most of the time

 

[Crazy8oooo]

I don't think we can afford to include both Terry and Comtois. Our winger depth at the NHL level is already painful as it is.

I'd rather give up Terry than Perreault. Terry's been really disappointing.

 

[Tempo]

Exactly, just like McDavid and Mathews.. never won anything in their NHL career.. Neither of them are gamers either..

One of the three is not the same.

I will let you figure that one out.

 

[FreshFitted67]

I am not wrong.
I am talking about the unnamed idiot who penned the underlying article Yardbarker quoted which Freidman referenced.

He said
DESPITE KNOWING ALL THE ESTABLISHED NEGATIVES
that a fair deal would include 2 top prospects and a pick.

Just no.
That is completely wrong, for Eichel today.
Tomorrow
IF IF IF
Eichel recovers, his value goes up, then there is room to discuss not today.




Watch what you say, b'c I have to call you out if you go there and are wrong.
What I said about Eichel currently being a medical risk is factually correct.
Likewise structural cap hit
likewise NY needs cap going forward and that supercedes this stupid damn win now move

I will not wager on whether or not an Eichel deal is an overpayment or by what level that overpayment is.

Sabes are hoping there is a GM who may be on borrowed time willing to risk a deal like that, with hope of getting lucky and saving his job, even tho best case if Eich returns in good form he is still not nec worth multiple high end pieces over time.

So you're "Not wrong" but you're unwilling to make a wager?

Sounds like you're not as confident as your "factually correct" rhetoric would suggest.

 

[BigDaddyLurch]

...Habs need to fix the D first, not give up D pieces...this makes them worse and we don't want to be the new Buffalo; lived through that decade already with my Habs after we traded Roy...

 

[FreshFitted67]

Eichel's value is what someone is willing to pay...

Your argument that Eichel is worth very little is utterly redundant if, like you say, there are GMs willing to risk a deal where they pay "multiple high end pieces"...

And we all know there are GMs who are willing to do that...

So, talk yourself in circles all you want, someone will pay more than your pitiful "medical risk" assessment...

 

[Djp]

To Montreal Canadiens : Jack Eichel.
To Buffalo Sabres : Jesperi Kotkaniemi + Alexander Romanov/Kaiden Guhle + 1st pick 2021 + 1st pick 2022.

That's a good offer for acquiring a player like Jack Eichel?

KK is a bust

 

[DavidBL]

Eichel's value is what someone is willing to pay...

Your argument that Eichel is worth very little is utterly redundant if, like you say, there are GMs willing to risk a deal where they pay "multiple high end pieces"...

And we all know there are GMs who are willing to do that...

So, talk yourself in circles all you want, someone will pay more than your pitiful "medical risk" assessment...

I agree with the first half. The second, not so much. We actually dont know how much teams are willing to pay as no actual offers have been leaked and he hasnt been traded. What we do know is that no one was willing to meet the initial demand, it is still uncertain where the revised ask is really sitting

 

[Dr Quincy]

None of your prospects are off the tables now boys, sorry.

Eichel is skating again. Narrative destroyed.

Also destroyed is the "We'll just keep him" narrative since Friedman also said that BUF is done with Eichel and that a trade is going to happen.

 

[gravey9]

Agree with pretty much all that you say in concept. What you are admitting though (whether you realize it or not) is that Eichel still has a medical issue that hasn't been resolved. If his neck issue was healed there would/should be no issue showing any team an x-ray of his healed upper vertebrae. In fact, you increase the competition for his services if you do that which then increases the asking price.

apparently, eichel needs to approve the sharing of his medical records. so, there's that too. I don't think Eichel or any team acquiring him would want any competition getting a free look at his medical files.

that said, if Eichel has a say in what teams get to see his file it may mean he has more control over destination than previously reported. That said, he and Sabres may have an agreement in place that only teams in serious contention for a deal will get to see the records. and perhaps a limit of 3-5 teams max.

 

[nbducksfan19]

Kings
Vegas
Ducks
Wild

in that order

 

[tomd]

apparently, eichel needs to approve the sharing of his medical records. so, there's that too. I don't think Eichel or any team acquiring him would want any competition getting a free look at his medical files.

that said, if Eichel has a say in what teams get to see his file it may mean he has more control over destination than previously reported. That said, he and Sabres may have an agreement in place that only teams in serious contention for a deal will get to see the records. and perhaps a limit of 3-5 teams max.

Hard to say but I can't believe Buffalo would allow themselves to be limited like that. But again, for me the issue is his current health and if he was healthy none of this would matter. I still can't believe any team will fork over assets for a player whose next step is neck surgery. 8 days to go...

 

[tsujimoto74]

The assets we'd have to send to Seattle to take $3m-$4m in retention for 5 years on top of what we'd have to play Buffalo for Eichel would be cataclysmic.

You wouldn't pick in the 1st round again until 2030.

 

[JoemAvs]

Also destroyed is the "We'll just keep him" narrative since Friedman also said that BUF is done with Eichel and that a trade is going to happen.

I mean not really. Everyone and their mother knew that Duchene and the Avs were done with each other as well. And yet they brought him back to start the season and waited 10-15 gams before they finally dealt him. And he was on the block for much longer than that offseason.

If questions about his health and how he will come back from the injury seriously impact his value, it makes sense to bring him back and let him answer those questions.. Its not like Buffalo has any intention of realistically making the playoffs next year anyways.

If Eichel wants out that badly, he has to either convince the trading partners now that health is not an issue going forward with him or prove that on the ice in the fall.
I don't see how the Sabres can trade him right now otherwise.

Sure its only a when and probably no longer an if when it comes to trading him. But that when still matters a ton.

 

[tsujimoto74]

Also destroyed is the "We'll just keep him" narrative since Friedman also said that BUF is done with Eichel and that a trade is going to happen.

Assuming that's true, still not really. Colorado was done with Duchene ~2 years before they traded him. Their front office still managed to conjure up ~3 brain cells and hold onto their asset until they got a deal they actually liked.