Sabres trade Jack Eichel to Golden Knights in six-player blockbuster
Buffalo Sabres former No. 2 overall pick Jack Eichel is finally on the move.
After much speculation over the 25-year-old's future, the Sabres have reportedly traded Eichel to the Vegas Golden Knights as a part of a six-player deal. The transaction was first reported by TSN and Sportsnet on Thursday morning and later confirmed by ESPN's Emily Kaplan.
In a follow-up Tweet, TSN's Darren Dreger reported that the "expectation" is that Eichel will have his much-discussed disk replacement surgery "very soon". Dreger further noted that while recovery time from the surgery varies, the hope is that Eichel will "be back on the ice" in four months.
Eichel has a herniated disk in his neck, and the former first-team All-Rookie's hope has been that Buffalo would trade him to a team that would allow him to get the surgery, a procedure that has never been performed on an NHL player before. The Sabres had reportedly preferred that Eichel receive a fusion surgery, and under NHL collective bargaining agreement rules, teams have the final say on how to treat player's injuries.
Eichel -- who is currently on the injured reserve list -- failed his team physical at Sabres camp prior to this season and was stripped of his captaincy in September. Eichel agreed to a franchise-record eight-year, $80 million contract with Buffalo in 2017.
Peyton Krebs is in his second season with the Golden Knights, after being selected 17th overall by the team in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Tuch was chosen 18th overall by the Minnesota Wild in 2014, but played just six games with the club in his debut season in 2016-2017, before being traded to Vegas.
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