5 Way-Too-Early Free-Agent Landing Spots for Jack Eichel

It wasn't supposed to be this soon for Jack Eichel.

The uber-skilled Vegas forward was anticipating another deep playoff run with the Golden Knights after they rolled to a Pacific Division title and bounced Minnesota from the tournament with a six-game win in the opening round.

But it ended abruptly in Round 2 courtesy of fellow 2015 draftee Connor McDavid and the Oilers, whom Eichel and Co. had eliminated on the way to a Stanley Cup hoist two springs ago. This time, it was Edmonton winning in five games, beating the Golden Knights, 1-0, in overtime.

That means it's decision time for the player and franchise, considering Eichel is now just one season away from unrestricted free agency. He's eligible to sign an extension with the Golden Knights come July 1, or GM Kelly McCrimmon can begin plotting what else he could do with the $14 million the 28-year-old might command annually.

The B/R hockey team considered all scenarios and compiled a way-too-early list of would-be landing spots for Eichel, who signed an eight-year, $80 million deal with the Buffalo Sabres in 2017.

Take a look at what we came up with and drop a thought of your own in the app comments.

Anaheim Ducks

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Joel Quenneville

They got the pedigreed coach. Now, maybe they go get the established player.

The Anaheim Ducks took a step toward stability behind the bench by hiring three-time Stanley Cup champion Joel Quenneville last week, bringing him back to the NHL for the first time since early in the 2021-22 season.

He follows a six-season run of comparative newbies in Dallas Eakins and Greg Cronin, who compiled just 162 wins in 455 games and reached zero playoffs.

And what better way to restart the program than with Eichel, whose inflated asking price would easily fit within the team's projected $38.6 million in cap space for 2025-26 and beyond, and whose presence would add postseason-proven street cred to a roster long included among the league's best collections of young talent.

Chicago Blackhawks

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Connor Bedard, left, and Jack Eichel

Eventually, they'll get the mix correct.

The Chicago Blackhawks welcomed Connor Bedard into the fold in 2023-24 and tinkered with the roster in his second year, adding a handful of veterans whose final production wound up keeping the team in the Central Division cellar.

Perhaps they'll now consider taking a run at Eichel in an effort to both placate their 19-year-old star and add legitimate prime-years talent into the top six.

Eichel would be a prized trinket for whoever is hired as the team's new full-time coach, and he'd also fit nicely into its salary structure as the league's cap annually expands to $95.5 million, $104 million and $113.5 million through 2028.

Montreal Canadiens

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It's already easy to be excited about Montreal's future.

The Canadiens are among the youngest overall teams in the league, and they ended a three-season playoff drought this spring thanks to a timely late-season push.

There's plenty of reason to believe coach Martin St. Louis and Co. will continue the upticks as the core continues to mature and gel, and the finances will be quite agreeable should Eichel get to UFA status 14 months from now—when the salary-cap rise yields a projected $48.6 million in space entering 2026-27.

Just imagine Eichel centering a line with wingers Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovsky, who'll be 25 and 22, respectively, on opening night that season.

Utah Mammoth

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Owner Ryan Smith has enthusiasm, a vision and deep pockets.

The Utah-based artists now known as the Mammoth left their checkered Arizona past behind with a 38-31-13 inaugural season in Salt Lake City, where they got 20 or more goals from three players younger than age 25 alongside a 90-point breakout run from grizzled 26-year-old veteran Clayton Keller.

They have better than $22 million in cap space heading toward the 2025-26 season in case Eichel shakes loose by trade, and that number swells to better than $56 million as contracts come off the books and the league's cap rises for 2026-27.

And it wouldn't be a tough logistical move, either, given the straight shot up I-15 from T-Mobile Arena to the Delta Center.

Vegas Golden Knights

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Who says you can't stay home?

Eichel's acquisition from Buffalo was arguably the deal that put the Golden Knights over the top to their championship in 2023, and there's little doubt McCrimmon would lean heavily toward keeping him if possible.

And it will be, even with nearly $26 million tied up annually in deals for Alex Pietrangelo, Shea Theodore and Mark Stone through 2026-27, not to mention another $34.9 million locked in over that time frame with Ivan Barbashev, Noah Hanifin, Tomas Hertl, Adin Hill, William Karlsson and Brayden McNabb.

Whether McCrimmon can afford those salaries, drop eight figures per year on Eichel and still have enough left over to field a feasible roster, though, is the big question.