Darren Dreger of TSN joined The Instigators on WGR 550 in Buffalo for his weekly chat, and discussed the ongoing contract negotiations with Jack Eichel. Eichel is heading into the final year of his entry-level contract, and there has been constant speculation that he’ll sign a long-term extension before the season begins. Not so fast says Dreger:
I’m now getting the sense that he’s okay starting the season without a contract extension in place.
It’s clearly part speculation on Dreger’s part, but it does make some sense from Eichel’s side. Losing part of last season to injury has brought his overall production through the first two years of his career, even though he remains one of the brightest young stars in the league. There is a chance he could push his contract even further up the salary charts with a breakout year.
That said, Buffalo already knows what they have in Eichel and seem willing to pay up for it. Recently GM Jason Botterill was quoted saying he wants to get his young center locked up for the max term, and that there had been nothing but positive talks between the two sides so far. It still seems likely that something will get done before the start of training camp, but if it doesn’t there is little cause for alarm.