(Las Vegas) Forward Jack Eichel said Monday he’s relieved the mega-deal that sent him from the Buffalo Sabers to the Vegas Golden Knights is behind him, and he can’t wait to hit the ice with his new team, although the wait could be around three months.
Eichel will undergo, Friday, the type of operation he wanted to undergo for his neck injury. Also, he is grateful that the Golden Knights supported the intervention, which led to a disagreement between the American forward and the Sabers and caused discontent with the organization.
Eichel said he wants the National Hockey League and the NHL Players’ Association to give players more leeway in how they treat injuries. In addition, he admits that he felt frustration because of the time that elapsed before he was granted permission to have the surgery as he wanted.
Suffering from a herniated disc, the 25-year-old forward must undergo surgery to artificially replace the problematic disc. Sabers officials opposed this medical procedure because it was never performed on an NHL player.
Eichel has lost nearly a full season to the tug-of-war over treatment.
“I think my situation has shed some light on some things that could be changed, and I hope they will be changed in the future,” said Eichel, who was speaking to reporters for the first time since arriving at Las Vegas Sunday.
“I don’t necessarily agree that only the team has a say in the medical treatment. I think it should be a collaboration. ”
Eichel is in the fourth season of an eight-year contract worth $ 80 million. He surpassed the 20-goal mark in each of his first five seasons, and in 2019-2020 he had an exceptional year with a career-high 36 goals in 68 games before the season was over. abruptly interrupted due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Overall, he has 139 goals and 216 assists in 375 games with the Sabers.
The Golden Knights acquired Eichel on Thursday in return for forward Alex Tuch, rookie center Peyton Krebs and two draft picks.
Golden Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon took a clear stand in favor of Eichel and his choice of the type of surgery he preferred to undergo.
“Respectfully, we leave it up to Jack and his representatives to choose the type of operation. Why wouldn’t his representatives want what’s best for him? ”
Eichel, who is expected to heal around three months, says he has done extensive research into the type of surgery, and he doesn’t believe it will make him an expensive or risky investment for a team that wants to take a long step forward. during the playoffs.
Also, according to Eichel, the type of operation that will be performed is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and has been practiced for a long time.
“My doctor started doing it in the early 2000s. He has therefore been practicing it for 20 years. I am very, very confident in what I am doing. ”
“Other players have treated herniated discs in different ways. But from what I heard, speaking of them, they were never really given the option. And I consider myself really lucky that the second opinion (which I collected) gave me the option to review a possibly superior operation. And I did as much research as I could to find out as much as I could about it. “
Eichel was also grateful to Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner, with whom he played in Buffalo, and who showed his support for him.
“He was a light in this situation, and I really think what he did helped my situation. I appreciate Robin as a person who speaks out when he believes in something. “
Sports reporter John Wawrow, in Buffalo, contributed to this article.