When Jack Eichel was named captain of the Buffalo Sabres in October 2018, the expectation was that the star center would hold that title for the duration of his career.
Eichel was the face of the franchise, an elite centerman drafted second overall in 2015 who fans thought would be the man to lead the Sabres back to prominence.
Three years later, and amid a disagreement with the club regarding his preference to have an artificial disk replacement, Eichel was stripped of his captaincy by the Sabres and awaits surgery after failing his physical in KeyBank Center on Wednesday.
General Manager Kevyn Adams informed Eichel of the decision Tuesday and addressed the team at the official start of camp.
"From our perspective and my perspective, I feel the captain is the heartbeat of your team," Adams told reporters prior to the Sabres’ first training camp practices Thursday. "And we're in a situation from where we were in the past and where we are now that we felt that we need to do to address that and make that decision here."
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It’s unclear where Eichel and the Sabres go from here. He plans to continue his rehabilitation away from the team, and coach Don Granato won’t name a captain anytime soon, as he prefers to have his young players focus on preparing for the season.
There doesn’t seem to be an end in sight. Eichel remains unwilling to have a fusion surgery, which would require approximately six months for recovery. Adams continues to field calls from other teams who are interested in acquiring Eichel, albeit at a price lower than the Sabres will accept.
The Sabres value Eichel as an elite centerman in his prime, while other general managers aren’t meeting the asking price because of the injury. When healthy, Eichel is among the best centers in the league, as the 24-year-old totaled five 20-plus goal seasons prior to his injury-shortened 2020-21.
“Jack's one of the best players in the world,” Adams said. “And that's why I say having him healthy playing is what we all want. So, we'll continue to look at every possibility of how we get there. And then if there's an opportunity to do something that we think's right for a franchise, we'll do it. But it's a challenging situation, obviously. But we're going to we're going to continue to work at it.”
It was only two seasons ago that Eichel totaled a career-high 36 goals in only 68 games, a performance that had him finish eighth in voting for the Hart Trophy. However, Eichel missed the start of training camp last January because of a broken rib suffered during a drill at LECOM Harborcenter and played through a lingering abdominal injury that he could not have repaired amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Then came a sprained ankle that kept him out of the lineup for two games and he played his final game on March 7 at Nassau Coliseum against the Islanders. Late in the loss, the Sabres’ seventh in a row, the broadcast showed Eichel on the bench, wincing in pain and grabbing his neck after a hit from behind by Casey Cizikas.
The Sabres didn’t initially rule out Eichel for the season, but the injury prevented him from returning. Across 21 games, Eichel totaled only two goals – the product of a career-worst 3.3 shooting percentage – and 18 points. He sought a second opinion and was prescribed a 12-week period of rest and recovery.
The Sabres waited to see if Eichel’s neck would heal but imaging and further assessments determined that surgery was necessary.
“Now we’re in this situation, Jack’s of the same mindset he was, our doctors have the same mindset, so that’s where we’re at right now and we’re just going to have to continue to work on what the solution is moving forward,” Adams said. "Now we’re in this situation, Jack’s of the same mindset he was, our doctors have the same mindset, so that’s where we’re at right now and we’re just going to have to continue to work on what the solution is moving forward.
When the draft and opening day of free agency passed without a trade, Eichel’s previous agents, Peter Fish and Peter Donatelli, released a statement that said both sides agreed surgery is necessary, but that Eichel’s camp was initially under the impression that the disk replacement would be approved by the team’s doctors. “The process is stopping Jack from playing in the NHL and it is not working,” the statement read.
Eichel fired his agents and hired Pat Brisson, whose client list includes Sabres prospect Owen Power, John Tavares, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Sidney Crosby. Yet, as training camps began across the NHL, and few teams have the cap space to afford Eichel’s $10 million cap hit, a trade doesn’t seem possible anytime soon.
While Eichel is under contract for five more years, his no-movement clause begins in July 2022, which would allow him to influence where he is traded. The clock is ticking and the only certainty is that Eichel won't be the Sabres' captain.
“As of now, we are in a situation where we have a player that is resistant to what our experts are saying and we are going to continue to trust what our medical doctors tell us, which is in the best interest of Jack as a human being and as a hockey player,” said Adams. “I don’t think it’s smart for me to speculate on down the road, in the future, what could or couldn’t happen, but we are adamant that we are going to stay on top of this, do what’s best for the franchise and whether that means today, or it means it takes time."