Jack Eichel isn’t the only superstar around the NHL eligible to sign a contract extension. However, he might be the only one without a cloud of uncertainty hanging over the situation. Insiders from Elliotte Friedman to Pierre LeBrun agree that it’s not a matter of if the deal gets done, but when.
When Eichel spoke with the media following day two of the Vegas Golden Knights’ training camp, he didn’t contradict those sentiments. Instead, he expressed a deep appreciation for the city and organization.
“I love it here in Vegas,” began Eichel. “[I love] this organization and the people involved in it, from ownership down through all our training staff and everyone you work with on a day-to-day basis. The community’s been great to me; I love living here.”
Eichel acknowledged that he has no control over when the deal gets done, but that didn’t seem to bother him– he’s more focused on what he can control.
“That stuff’s out of my control,” Eichel continued. “You just work on getting yourself in shape and ready to play and do your job the best you can. Things like that take care of themselves. My focus is on being prepared for the season, and trying to be a good teammate and the best player I can be.”
Some players loathe the preseason, but Eichel isn’t one of them. He called it important, citing both personally and to the team as a whole.
“There are so many great things about Training Camp and the preseason,” said Eichel. “We’re all, collectively as a group, trying to work to get our game in line with how we want to play as a team. I think we’ve developed that identity over the last few years, and the systems. You bring a few new faces in, you want them to be able to pick that up as quickly as possible. And they will, because they’re all high hockey IQ guys and our coaches do a good job of teaching it.”
For Eichel, part of Training Camp and the preseason this year is about building chemistry with Mitch Marner. Eichel is no stranger to Marner or his game. The two forwards have faced off 16 times during the regular season and on more than one occasion on the international stage.
“I played in the same division as him for six years, played against him quite a bit,” said Eichel. “I think we all know how good he is, right? I’ve always had an unbelievable appreciation for his game as somebody who lined up against him. You watch him, as a fan of hockey, and some of the stuff he does on the ice is world-class.
“He’s such a dynamic player with the puck on his stick,” continued Eichel. “He can create a lot from nothing. He uses his edges well, makes a ton of plays, and thinks the game at an extremely high level… You give a guy like that time and space on the ice, he’s going to make a lot of plays. For me, him, and [Ivan Barbashev], we’ll continue to work at every rep in practice and try to continue to develop chemistry.
“You want to have some communication. I think more so that will come when we get preseason game reps. In practice, it’s a little more controlled. But at the same time, it’s important to have communication. I think that’s what allows guys to be able to read off of each other… We’ll just keep working at it every day, trying to get better.”