Breakthrough season for Eichel

[Rebels57]

McDavid is the best player on earth by a landslide and even he cannot carry the Oilers to 1st place. I mean he litereally had a point on every single goal the Oilers scored until that OT winner by Nurse last night. He carried them on his shoulders. But if you don't have a decent support group, you're not gonna win. It's a team game. Even if you have McDavid.

This is more about how little talent Edmonton has after McDavid.

Chiarelli has royally f***ed up that team.

 

[BusQuets]

It's his hockey iq/vision. It was clear to me from the day 1. He always takes 1 second too long to make the decision and that will always separate him from guys like Matthews and Barkov. MacKinnon also doesn't have the vision the previous guys have but he has amazing drive which Eichel also does not possess.

 

[QJL]

Nathan MacKinnon put up 53 points in his 21-22 year old season. He’s being listed here as a top franchise player who Eichel will never match. Let’s have patience for another year or two. Kid has been through a ton of injuries which has held back his development. The potential is still there for him to be a top 5 player in the league. His defensive play is the first thing he needs to address.

 

[NextYear67]

He's no Matthews thats for sure

 

[Gabrielor]

Eichel isn’t in conversation with Matthews, McDavid, or MacKinnon as it currently stands. Not close either.

Talent? He has enough to be up in that group, however....

Ability to play the team game that is hockey? This is where the current questions are. And boy will they get loud soon if he keeps phoning in games and only giving 100% when he’s angry or on an odd man rush.

 

[joe dirte]

he's a pretty good player. I mean, obviously McDavid is a tier above all young players these days. Then Matthews. But then the next group, he fits in quite nicely with the Mackinnon, Barkov group.

 

[Dustin]

Interesting that other fans are defending Eichel, while most Sabres fans are not. From afar, they see a young player who's doing quite well, and wonder what all the fuss is about. Up close, we see the unrealized potential of a player blessed with enough talent to dominate games, but who so rarely does.

If he ever develops an intensity to match his prodigious skills, we'll see the player we expected. Maybe it's just not in him.

Sabres fans are also a little down just due to all they have had to deal with over the years. That being said I think Eichel may fall somewhere in between the 2 expectations being set for him here.

I think there was a lot of comparisons to other players especially Matthews. There was a lot of non Leafs fans more than willing to say Eichel was the superior player and lots of Leafs fans spouting hyperbole about Matthews that perhaps some people began to believe in the hype some people were saying about Eichel.

That being said I think Eichel is an elite forward in the NHL. I think he is in the season tier as the Matthews, MacKinnon, Barkov, etc.

I've noted in the past that Eichel has taken games off. The last time I saw him do that was early on last year. I only watched him about 15 games last year at best and the others were far better. In fact several other Buffalo fans also confirmed that his compete level was better as the year went on. Now I have not seen him play this year yet so I can't comment on him now.

Either way Buffalo certainly needs him to play his best to have any chance at winning night in and night out but if they are going to rely only on him, it's going to be a long year.

 

[Healthy DiPietro]

Eichel has been good this season, don't even get what you're all talking about.

 

[PensandCaps]

Anyone saying He's not a franchise player or as good as a Matthews or Barkov is just wrong.

He's a PPG C who carries an awful team. Doubt many would thrive in this position.

 

[SabresSharks]

Sabres fans are also a little down just due to all they have had to deal with over the years. That being said I think Eichel may fall somewhere in between the 2 expectations being set for him here.

I think there was a lot of comparisons to other players especially Matthews. There was a lot of non Leafs fans more than willing to say Eichel was the superior player and lots of Leafs fans spouting hyperbole about Matthews that perhaps some people began to believe in the hype some people were saying about Eichel.

That being said I think Eichel is an elite forward in the NHL. I think he is in the season tier as the Matthews, MacKinnon, Barkov, etc.

I've noted in the past that Eichel has taken games off. The last time I saw him do that was early on last year. I only watched him about 15 games last year at best and the others were far better. In fact several other Buffalo fans also confirmed that his compete level was better as the year went on. Now I have not seen him play this year yet so I can't comment on him now.

Either way Buffalo certainly needs him to play his best to have any chance at winning night in and night out but if they are going to rely only on him, it's going to be a long year.

I don't care how Eichel compares to any other player.

I just see what Eichel could be, versus what he is most nights, and am left wanting.

 

[Leafs at Knight]

He's fine lol. Although I wouldn't have named him captain.

 

[kk87]

I've never been overly high on Eichel but this thread is hilarious... the guy has 5 points in 6 games after a point per game season as a 21 year old and people are writing him off?

 

[Yamazaki]

The sabres were a far better team and organization when they had a cheap owner.

 

[John Eichel da GOAT]

He is on another level or even two compared to anyone around him. I would blame management, not Eichel. Swap Eichel with Matthews and the articles would be identical now just with Eichels name instead.

Of these 4 players, what two would you say have the best tools around them to succeed? Matthews, MacKinnon, Eichel, McDavid.

We can argue all day who is the best but in reality they are all very close to one another and each have strengths over the next.

But, BUT, MacKinnon and Matthews have much better pieces around them to help them succeed. McDavid and Eichel are one man shows with a ton of average to below average depth players holding them back.

McDavid will win a ton of Art Ross's, but may not make the playoffs for most of them. Eichel has a chance with Dahlin and Middlestadt, but it is still too early to tell if either can play on Jack's level.

So in summary, Buffalo is gonna Buffalo and throw crap at anything they can to find a reason to complain. Eichel is a rockstar, you just aren't utilizing him correctly.

I swear half of the posters here dont even watch the games. Eichel is ballet dancing out there like a superstar looking for anyone to do anything to help him. GTFOpen for a pass already!

 

[John Eichel da GOAT]

It should be noted that Mackinnon's point totals by season were...

2013 - 14: 63 points
2014 - 15: 38 points
2015 - 2016: 52 points
2016 - 2017: 53 points
2017 - 2018: 97 points

Eichel has realistically had better production in his career before Mackinnon had his insane season last year.

Why is a Mackinnon like break out impossible for Eichel? 2 seasons ago 98% of this board would rank him above Mackinnon..anything can happen.

That is such a half-assed way to look at things. How about the pieces around MacKinnon then and now. That is what you should be comparing, not going right to NHL.com stats for one player.

 

[SabresSharks]

I've never been overly high on Eichel but this thread is hilarious... the guy has 5 points in 6 games after a point per game season as a 21 year old and people are writing him off?

Nobody is "writing him off". His G/A/P stats and birth date don't tell the whole story.

 

[Snippit]

Eichel was horrible last night but this thread is way too reactionary. Far too many hot takes in here.

People always like to draw conclusions and make ridiculous statements after 5 games. In his 67 games last year he played at a pretty dominant level for around 35-40 (slow start and slow end after injury) Short term memories.

It’s also not like he hasn’t ever produced. He was 11th in the NHL in p/gp as a sophomore.

I expected a better start but Eichel will be fine.

 

[nickdawg95]

Eichel is Fine he'll put up 80 points this year and up this Defence(Hopefully). sounds like OP is really insecure and looking for strangers on the internet to comfort him " ohh its okay eichel still pretty good, don't worry" Nah show some #Sabrepride. he one of few bright spots on the sabres and you make a thread throwing dirt on the kids name. no cap you really gotta think before you post. no cap eichel the goat.

 

[Yatzhee]

Its only 6 games in. He's at or near a ppg player career wise. He's got plenty of time to get the right players around him. Although, admittedly, since the start of the season he hasn't been nearly as tenacious as I expected.
The Sabres themselves are at a crossroads of sorts roster wise. There is a plethora of real talent on their AHL roster right now, but many of them are in their first pro year. It may take another season or 2 to find the right line mates for Eichel to reach his zenith. He has the ability to drive games by himself, we've seen it from time to time, but he needs to be that player every night, game in and game out.
He'll either shit or get off the pot, there is no other way to view it.

 

[Eternal Leaf]

Some of the posts here are overreactions.

The only criticism I do agree with is his tendency to take shifts off. That's very hard to dispute while watching Eichel play.

No matter what, Eichel's skillset is insane and he will dominate as he gets older.

 

[Morbo]

Offensively he'll always be good. It's the rest of his game and his personal drive and character that will decide how great of a player he ends up being.

 

[Cleatus]

Still too early in the season (and his career) to say he's disappointing. Yeah he might not be as good as Matthews, buts he's at least in the tier with Seguin and company, which is perfectly worthy of a 2nd overall pick.

 

[EichHart]

If I gave the same amount of effort at my job that Eichel does, I would have been fired so fast. I can't believe he gets 10 million a year to skate around the rink like that. I can count nearly 10 lost board battles today with no effort to retrieve or fight for the puck. The NHL is about effort and winning board battles. He just doesn't care. Great example captain Jack.

 

[Eat The Rich]

Interesting that other fans are defending Eichel, while most Sabres fans are not. From afar, they see a young player who's doing quite well, and wonder what all the fuss is about. Up close, we see the unrealized potential of a player blessed with enough talent to dominate games, but who so rarely does.

If he ever develops an intensity to match his prodigious skills, we'll see the player we expected. Maybe it's just not in him.

I noticed that too... The only critics have been Sabres fans, and people have gone as far as to say it's just that you guys are down on your team due to a slow start. People just believe what they want to believe.

 

[SabresSharks]

I noticed that too... The only critics have been Sabres fans, and people have gone as far as to say it's just that you guys are down on your team due to a slow start. People just believe what they want to believe.

The thought process is a tried-and-true HFB staple.

"Hey, bud, I can read a stat line. You guys who watch him every game don't know what you're talking about. insert-goofy-emoji-here"