It's not a bad thing that Buffalo sports fans will have a keen eye trained towards the Czech Republic for the 2015 IIHF World Ice Hockey Championships. After all, the future centerpiece of the Sabres is Team USA's Jack Eichel whom Buffalo will end up selecting with the 2nd-overall pick in June barring anything weird happening.
Eichel is the youngest member of Team USA (to this point,) edging out fellow collegiate freshman Dylan Larkin by just about three months, and he'll have the opportunity to see how he measures up against some of the best hockey players in the world. In a harbinger of things to come should he land in Buffalo, Eichel will be the focal point (along with a few other younger players) up front amidst a sea of pluggers and grinders. Although USA management, headed by Stan Bowman (CHI) and Dean Lombardi (LAK,) plucked forwards from every professional league above the ECHL-level, talent looks to be very limited. Eichel and Larkin, along with Harvard junior Jimmy Vesey, will lead the offensive charge when Team USA opens up the tournament on Friday versus Finland (10 am EST.)
An alphabetical list of Team USA's forwards to date and their 2014-15 stats:
Mark Arcobello (EDM, NSH, PIT, ARI)--77gm, 17g, 7a
Nick Bonino (VAN)--75gm, 15g, 24a
Jack Eichel (Boston U.)--40gm, 26g, 45a
Matt Hendricks (EDM)--71gm, 8g, 8a
Dylan Larkin (Michigan U.)--35gm, 15g, 32a
Trevor Lewis (LAK)--73gm, 9g, 16a
Stefan Matteau (Albany Devils, AHL)--61gm, 12g, 15a
Jeremy Morin (CHI, CBJ)--43gm, 2g, 4a
Steve Moses (Jokerit, KHL)--60g, 36g, 21a
Dan Sexton (Nizhnekamsk Neftekhimik, KHL)--49gm, 19g, 28a
Ben Smith (CHI, SJS)--80gm, 7g, 7a
Jimmy Vesey (Harvard U.)--37g, 32g, 26a
Being an offensive centerpiece a daunting task for an 18 yr. old like Eichel, but he's managed to succeed at BU with a target on his back all season while playing against players four, five or even six years his senior. His single season point total of 71 is second only to Paul Kariya (100) in NCAA history and he won the Hobey Baker Award. At 6'1" 191 lbs he's got the size to compete with the pros, but maybe even more important, Eichel has the strength and attitude to make an impact at the next level.
“He’s got the strength of a 25-year-old," said BU head coach David Quinn earlier this month (via NESN.) "He’s incredibly tough. You see his stats and his skill and all those things — don’t get me wrong, they’re elite — but he’s a tough son of a (gun). He’s competitive, and he’s withstood a lot.”
In addition to size and age discrepancies, Eichel will get a pretty good taste for the speed of the game at the next level as well, but there's no reason to think that it will phase him once he adjusts. He displays top-notch skating and the ability to process the game full speed.
With franchise-level talent and ultra competitiveness, probably the only question with Eichel revolves around his off season decision on whether to turn pro or stay in college for another year. Despite the "unfinished business" argument for him to stay in school, unless the World's are a total disaster, the odds of him heading back to Boston University in a quest for the national championship are pretty long.
Which is good news for Sabres fans as most want the future to begin now, not next year.
For the uninitiated, a good site for the lowdown on the 2015 World Championships is
Broad Street Hockey which has the tournament format, tournament schedule and TV schedule among other tidbits.
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