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• Was Player of the Year , Rookie of the Year , member of the All-Rookie Team , and MVP of the conference tournament .
He went professional before he became a BU sophomore .
With the Sabres , Eichel was even more incredible .
• Youngest player in Sabres ’ history to score a goal in his first game .
• Top Sabres ’ scorer in his rookie year — 24 goals , 56 points in 81 games .
• Missed most of his 2nd season due to a high ankle sprain , but still finished the year with 24 goals and 33 assists in just 61 games .
Between 2015 and 2020 , Eichel was the Sabres ’ most valuable player — a literal scoring machine . In 2017 , he signed an eight-year , $ 10 million PER year contract .
In 2020 Eichel set a franchise record for goals scored in overtime — indeed , Eichel holds the franchise record for most regular-season overtime goals .
Being such a scoring threat , the thugs and mugs of professional hockey targeted Eichel relentlessly .
Battle Royale Erupts
In a March 2021 game with the New York Islanders , Eichel suffered a herniated cervical disc . The team doctor said he ’ d miss 7-10 days . In fact , he didn ’ t return at all . Without Eichel , the Sabres lost 18 games straight .
Four days after that game with the Islanders , Eichel went to an independent specialist to learn how severe his injury was . It certainly felt bad . The specialist told him he needed an artificial total disc . Not a fusion .
Many well-known golfers have successfully returned to the PGA tour after being treated with total disc arthroplasty .
But golf ain ’ t hockey .
On March 13 , 2021 , Sabres ’ coach Ralph Krueger announced that Eichel would remain out for the “ foreseeable future .” One month later , Krueger said Eichel would be out for the season . And Eichel ’ s treatment ? More rehab . Any question of surgery , said the coach , was delayed indefinitely .
The doctors kept saying he needed surgery . However , under the NHL ’ s collective bargaining agreement , neither the doctors nor Eichel had final authority over his treatment . Only the Buffalo Sabres organization .
In constant pain , Eichel demanded surgery , specifically total disc arthroplasty .
“ I ’ d be lying to say that things have moved smoothly since my injury ,” Eichel said . “ There ’ s been a bit of a disconnect between myself and the organization . It ’ s been tough at times . The most important thing now is to try to get healthy , figure out a way to be available to play hockey next year , wherever that might be .”
On July 30 , Eichel ’ s lawyers threw down the gauntlet saying , in effect , give Eichel what he wants , or he ’ s gone . Peter Fish and Peter Donatelli , Eichel ’ s lawyers , said Buffalo ’ s reluctance to allow Eichel his desired surgery is “ stopping Jack from playing in the NHL and it is not working .”
Six whole months since his injury , with physicians for BOTH the Sabres and Eichel saying the young man needed surgery , Eichel reported for his pre-season physical . He failed . The team stripped him of his captaincy and put him on injured reserve .
Eichel made his final , desperate plea for total disc arthroplasty to the Sabres in mid-October 2021 .
It landed on deaf ears . Sabres Trade Eichel to Las Vegas Golden Knights
On November 4 , 2021 , Eichel was traded , along with a third-round draft pick , to the Las Vegas hockey team — the Golden Knights .
The Knights agreed to pay for Eichel ’ s total disc arthroplasty .
Could a total disc replacement stand up to the pounding and aggressive checking in professional hockey ?
No NHL player had ever been treated with a total disc arthroplasty . And , truth be told , the Sabres also were hesitant to risk Eichel ’ s trade value — what if the surgery failed ?
Eichel ’ s first game back after total disc surgery was on February 16 , 2022 . He played 18 minutes — and did not score a goal . His first post-surgery goal came on February 20 in a 4 – 1 victory over the San Jose Sharks . Eichel finished his post-surgery season with 12 goals and 10 assists in 33 games — so-so .
Then Came the 2022-2023 Season
In the first 23 games of 2023 , Eichel scored 26 points , a career-high and led the Golden Knights to first place in the Pacific Division . Against his former team , Buffalo , he scored a hat trick while also managing an assist and led the Golden Knights to a 7 – 4 victory .
Eichel finished 2023 with 27 goals and 39 assists in 67 games . Superstar stats .
In the 2023 playoffs — Eichel ’ s first since becoming a professional hockey player eight years ago — he led the Knights to win the first series of games . In
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