Player Discussion Jack Eichel - Switching from #15 to #9

[Chainshot]

http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/...rustrations-setting-buffalo-sabres-slow-start

 

[darcyRegier]

Why does Jack glide so much? Its like he forgot that he's a top5 skater in the NHL. He literally didn't take one stride from center ice all the way to the goal line on Pommers dump in. I swear he goes from best player on the ice at the beginning of his shift to one of the worst player on the ice by the end of it. The kid is absolutely jacked, no way he should be that gassed after 30 seconds smh.

He has the talent to be one of the best American players ever, but unless he starts giving more effort shift in and shift out I'm unsure whether he'll be mentioned there with Kane/Modano/possibly Matthews/etc.

He also has one of the worst faceoff forms I've ever seen, ROR needs to make him stay after practice and work on that. 40% on faceoffs doesn't help either

 

[Snippit]

Haven't liked him in the last few games to be honest

 

[Gabrielor]

 

[darcyRegier]

Please refer to 4:10 of the video to see what "generational prospect" Jack Eichel was all about...

Where is this? I know it's the NHL and you can't do this all the time, but look at the SPEED.

Oh my goodness Jack please just one good rush. Is the ankle never gonna be the same?? I wanna cry watching this. I need the SPEED Jack.. the SPEED!!

Please for the love of god Eichel give us the SPEED

 

[Logicize]

Hi guys. Managed to catch a few Buffalo games on TV this year with particular interest in Eichel. His hands are incredible, but am I mistaken when it seems like he doesn't skate that hard? Perhaps they're powerful strides? Always seems like he's coasting around with the occasional speed burst.

I've especially noticed zone entries to be VERY SLOW - I would have expected a higher tempo game from him. Does he like to slow the play down?

I should have prefaced this with the fact that he's in my pool and I was sincerely hoping he'd have a 90 point season haha. Aside from that though, I'm rooting for Buffalo big time as I believe the fan base deserves it. I'm an Oiler fan so I still identify with the struggle!

 

[Aladyyn]

Hi guys. Managed to catch a few Buffalo games on TV this year with particular interest in Eichel. His hands are incredible, but am I mistaken when it seems like he doesn't skate that hard? Perhaps they're powerful strides? Always seems like he's coasting around with the occasional speed burst.

You are correct on all accounts here. He coasts quite a bit but his stride is definitely deceiving too.

I've especially noticed zone entries to be VERY SLOW - I would have expected a higher tempo game from him. Does he like to slow the play down?

Once again correct in your analysis. For a player with his skating, he plays a very slow game. The habit of dropping all the way down to our net when starting transition is especially annoying (and moving him to wing for a bit should help correct it but alas).

 

[AustonsNostrils]

That power move he almost scored on in the OT against Montreal is something we should be seeing a few times a game at even strength from him, McDavid and Mathews do it. His slowing the game down to a walk to drag and dangle by people is becoming annoying - it doesn't work often enough against NHL players.

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

Eichel is not “generational” like I had thought/hoped. His hockey IQ seems to be an impediment.

So forget generational — At this point, I’d be thrilled if he was as good as Jamie Benn.

 

[Moskau]

He's looking more like a Nathan MacKinnon player that while good to great is not a piece you can focus your entire team around. Way too many people assumed he was going to take the next step and become a 100 point player when he's more likely to be a 80 point player with his Hockey IQ. Pair that with his lackadaisical effort and 80 points might eventually be considered a good year for him. People want to feel sorry for him constantly being compared to McDavid but Eichel is going to be making $2-$3 Million a season more than he's worth thanks to Connor.

 

[Jame]

He's looking more like a Nathan MacKinnon player that while good to great is not a piece you can focus your entire team around. Way too many people assumed he was going to take the next step and become a 100 point player when he's more likely to be a 80 point player with his Hockey IQ. Pair that with his lackadaisical effort and 80 points might eventually be considered a good year for him. People want to feel sorry for him constantly being compared to McDavid but Eichel is going to be making $2-$3 Million a season more than he's worth thanks to Connor.

I worry about what the contract is going to do to him (mentally... maybe what it's doing already).... he's going to feel the entire weight of being the first player to earn a Mega contract while doing absolutely nothing to earn it (other than being drafted/compared to McDavid).

The Eichel contract is the biggest front office mistake since the co-caps debacle.

 

[26CornerBlitz]

 

[Beukeboom]

Please refer to 4:10 of the video to see what "generational prospect" Jack Eichel was all about...

Where is this? I know it's the NHL and you can't do this all the time, but look at the SPEED.

Oh my goodness Jack please just one good rush. Is the ankle never gonna be the same?? I wanna cry watching this. I need the SPEED Jack.. the SPEED!!

Please for the love of god Eichel give us the SPEED

Agree. Speed was the reason I thought he was able to compete for an Art. Vision/passing, shot and dekes are definately up there with McDavid and Matthews. I'd say he beats McDavid in shooting and Matthews in passing for instance. But without speed you can't be the best in today's game. So it is all about getting back to it for him.

As someone mentioned I have also noticed he likes to slow the game down too much sometimes. It is a gift in it self to be able to slow it down but not always. But to be fair he has no linemate to rely on like McDavid/Draistl, Matthews/Nylander, Kucherov/Stamkos/Namestikov. Kane can skate straight through neutral ice and dump the puck or shot but he is not creative. On top of that they have no good defensmen. I have noticed that it is almost impossible for his line to create offensive zone pressure for a sustained period of time since the defensmen never are able to keep the puck in. At best they get it and dump it to the corner. The dump in the corner thing is not effective anymore.

 

[haseoke39]

I think he deserves to play without Kane for a while before confirming his contracts a mess. Jack with Kane isn't an $8m player so far. Jack with girgensons might be another story.

 

[Beukeboom]

I think he deserves to play without Kane for a while before confirming his contracts a mess. Jack with Kane isn't an $8m player so far. Jack with girgensons might be another story.

Maybe. I really like Kane, tough, brings instensity, doesn't give up. The problem is that he is pretty straight forward, skate and shot. Eichel would do well with at least one player on his side that can maintain zone pressure with some finess and hockey IQ rather than just attack the net like a missile. Also at least one D that can be creative and not just dump the puck in the corner.

McDavid is not as productive without Drai and Matthews gets a lot of help by the fact that Nylander also can take the puck from their own zone to the other end and do something with the puck other than just shot.

So before you guys rip him apart, bar Crosby. Name one guy that does it on his own? McD/Drai, Benn/Seguin, Bergeron/Marchand, Kucherov/Stamkos/Namesikov, Kessel/Malkin, Matthews/Nylander, Wheeler/Scheifele, Getzlaf/Perry, Voracek/Giroux, last season Kane/Panarin..

Crosby always had Malkin and Kessel in PP and Letang or Shultz on D. Eichel, and perhaps Tavares, are the only talents at that level without anything to work with. That part is Buffalo's fault not his own.

 

[Dubi Doo]

He's looking more like a Nathan MacKinnon player that while good to great is not a piece you can focus your entire team around. Way too many people assumed he was going to take the next step and become a 100 point player when he's more likely to be a 80 point player with his Hockey IQ. Pair that with his lackadaisical effort and 80 points might eventually be considered a good year for him. People want to feel sorry for him constantly being compared to McDavid but Eichel is going to be making $2-$3 Million a season more than he's worth thanks to Connor.

I had this exact same realization a few days ago.

Nothing is more demoralizing than watching your franchise center who is going to make 10 million a year give half ass efforts game in and game out.

 

[SabresSharks]

...
So before you guys rip him apart, bar Crosby. Name one guy that does it on his own? McD/Drai, Benn/Seguin, Bergeron/Marchand, Kucherov/Stamkos/Namesikov, Kessel/Malkin, Matthews/Nylander, Wheeler/Scheifele, Getzlaf/Perry, Voracek/Giroux, last season Kane/Panarin
...

Almost every one of those guys can create their own offensive chances. Just because their coaches sensibly play them with other talented forwards doesn't imply that they can't.

Nobody is "rip(ping) him apart". We simply expect a player whose physical skills are absolutely elite to provide performance, effort, and leadership commensurate with the $80 million contract he recently signed.

 

[Chainshot]

I would love to see him with a puck retrieval guy all the time. That might actually be Sam at this point, but the Gus-Jack-Sam trio is what I'd like to see from what is currently on the team.

 

[haseoke39]

We simply expect a player whose physical skills are absolutely elite to provide performance, effort, and leadership commensurate with the $80 million contract he recently signed.

Not all of us honestly expect that.

 

[1972]

He's looking more like a Nathan MacKinnon player that while good to great is not a piece you can focus your entire team around. Way too many people assumed he was going to take the next step and become a 100 point player when he's more likely to be a 80 point player with his Hockey IQ. Pair that with his lackadaisical effort and 80 points might eventually be considered a good year for him. People want to feel sorry for him constantly being compared to McDavid but Eichel is going to be making $2-$3 Million a season more than he's worth thanks to Connor.

There are like zero players you can focus your entire team around. Maybe Crosby and McDavid, that’s about it.

 

[wnysupport]

K

 

[SabresSharks]

Not all of us honestly expect that.

Should have said "I".

I'm not giving up on him realizing his full potential. It's still very early in his career.

If he doesn't, Botts will have made a major blunder very early in his.

 

[Snippit]

Does Jack look slower to anyone else this year?

I don't notice him blowing by guys like he did in his rookie year.

Also he's not beating goalies from far out any more. In the last couple of years he'd be a threat to score from just about anywhere.

 

[struckbyaparkedcar]

I had this exact same realization a few days ago.

Nothing is more demoralizing than watching your franchise center who is going to make 10 million a year give half ass efforts game in and game out.

Don't hire shitty coaches.

 

[haseoke39]

I think the question becomes relevant why does he bother putting in the work to reach that next level if the team isn't close to a contender and he's already earned $80M. What does he gain?