The rumors around a potential trade involving Jack Eichel have been intensifying of late. On Wednesday, Pierre LeBrun reported that discussions have been heating up and that the Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, Anaheim Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers are among the suitors. Let’s take a look at how adding Eichel would impact each of these teams.
For the analysis, we’ll start with the offseason rosters built as per this post. All UFAs have been removed from the rosters and we’ve assumed that all RFAs will return to give us a starting point for next season’s projections. For now, we’ll assume that the team acquiring Eichel does not give up a roster player so we can focus solely on Eichel’s impact to the team. Obviously, some teams may need to shed salary or a roster player may head the other way in a deal which could also impact the team projections.
Los Angeles Kings
Adding Eichel would certainly give a young Kings team a boost down the middle. While his impact on next season’s projection is quite modest, the Kings may be more interested in what he can add to the team a couple of years down the road.
Minnesota Wild
The Wild showed they can compete with the powerhouse teams in the Western Conference this season. The would be looking for an immediate return by adding Eichel and Eichel looks like a good fit in our model.
Anaheim Ducks
The Ducks are another young team who would be looking for Eichel to lead their up and coming crop of talent.
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets need to find a way to get Patrik Laine going and adding Eichel could be the answer.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers core is getting older and adding Eichel would inject some youth into their roster, while providing some additional offense.
New York Rangers
The Rangers are loaded with young talent and adding Eichel might just be a move that moves the dial into contender territory.
