Jack Eichel

Jack Eichel is the engine the Golden Knights built around, and he's been the guy the whole building runs through since November 2021. That big trade with the Sabres wasn't just adding a top-line center, it was closing the gap that had kept Vegas from being a true contender. The second overall pick brought the kind of acceleration that turns defensemen, and he made a good top line feel like a problem only the other team has to solve. Watch him in warmups sometime, the way he loads the puck and snaps that one-timer, how calm it all looks. That release is maybe the most dangerous thing he owns, and it's been that way since his rookie year.

He's never just a scorer, though. Eichel plays both ends of the rink, thinks the game fast, and has a real gift for pulling defensemen toward the puck before finding somebody open. It's why he runs the top power play as the lead distributor and drives possession in all three zones. During the 2023 Cup run he led the Knights in postseason scoring, and he came back from Team USA with Olympic gold after the 2026 Games. Look at this forward group and he's the piece everything else turns around.

What is expected of Jack Eichel in 2026-2027?

The bar is clear: break the 100-point threshold. He's knocked on the door, including a 90-point season in 74 games, and after years of pacing right around a point-per-game, this is the year to finally clear it. That means heavy offensive-zone minutes, full control of the first power play, and keeping that chemistry with the top wingers clicking from the start. The real test still has to be health. The multi-game absences that got in his way early in his career can't happen if Vegas wants to go deep again, and if they keep him on the ice all year, this could be a June team.