Breaking down former Buffalo Sabres captain, Jack Eichel
By Sion Fawkes
The Buffalo Sabres face their toughest task yet this season against the Vegas Golden Knights, who happen to have a familiar face playing at a high level.
Of course, Jack Eichel’s name will live in infamy with most of the Buffalo Sabres faithful. And although simply getting one over with Eichel is the least of my concerns tonight, I will concede to the fact that he has been, thus far, arguably the Vegas Golden Knights best player.
And therefore, it is crucial that we break down his game and find a way to get the best of Eichel heading into tonight’s contest. Despite much animosity toward Eichel in the Sabres fanbase, he is a great hockey player who so far in 2022, has transformed the Golden Knights into a force to be reckoned with.
So can the Sabres stop Eichel? Here is a short breakdown of their former team captain.
Jack Eichel could make life tough for the Buffalo Sabres
Eichel currently leads the Golden Knights in points with 15, and through 14 games, he is on pace for 87 points this season. So yes, it means, at this point, Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin are on pace to score more than Eichel.
But it also means Eichel is a threat to score from anywhere on the ice, as his 12.2% shooting percentage indicates, which is currently the second-best of his career. His possession metrics at even strength, however, show just how much more effective Eichel has been this season in Vegas than during his time with the Sabres.
His Corsi For% is 58.1%, and his Fenwick is even better, sitting at a stellar 61.9%. Both are career highs, as is the Knights on-ice save percentage when he is in the game, which sits at a remarkable 91.7%.
With an offensive zone starting percentage of 49.7%, in accordance with his high CF% and FF%, it tells me that Eichel has been responsible more than a few times of driving the puck into the offensive zone and creating scoring opportunities for either himself or teammates. Overall, Eichel’s play offensively has risen to another level this season.
If there is one major flaw in his game, however, it is that Eichel is logging nearly as many giveaways per game as Casey Mittelstadt, with 12 on the year compared to Mittelstadt’s 13. This indicates Eichel can be erratic with the puck, and it could provide a golden opportunity for the Sabres to create multiple turnovers when Eichel tries to make a big play.
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Let’s hope the Buffalo Sabres stay vigilant in this one, because they have potential to put a dagger into Eichel’s dangerous play by creating a turnover or two. And even if Eichel gets his points, the Sabres could still wind up capitalizing on their former team captain’s occasional recklessness with the puck.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)
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