Death, taxes, and Jack Eichel being in the NHL Network's Top 20 Centers Right Now list

It's no secret that Jack Eichel is good at hockey. The Vegas Golden Knights superstar is regarded as one of the league's best centers, carrying his team whenever he gets the chance. When you have consecutive seasons of 90 or more points, you've earned that distinction.

That's especially true with the NHL Network, which recognized Eichel for his talents. How well did he do, you ask? Well, the Olympic gold medalist finished sixth in the NHL Network's Top 20 Centers Right Now list, representing the Golden Knights as their franchise face.

Ironically, sixth was the position that he finished in last season. Eichel scored 27 goals and 63 assists with the Golden Knights last season, putting up similar numbers to his record-breaking season in 2024-25. Eichel was the only Golden Knights center to make this season's list, with William Karlsson, Tomas Hertl, and Nic Dowd missing the mark.

As for noteworthy names within the Realm, a couple of prominent centers popped up. First was Montreal Canadiens star and ex-Golden Knights farmhand, Nick Suzuki. The superstar finished ninth in the rankings after posting a solid 2025-26 campaign. Here, he scored 29 goals and 72 assists (101 points), leading the Canadiens in numerous aspects.

The other notable name is none other than Detroit Red Wings center Dylan Larkin. If you've heard the rumors (and there are plenty), you'll know that the Olympic gold medalist has the Golden Knights as one of his preferred teams. Last season, Larkin scored 34 goals and 33 assists with the Red Wings.

Jack Eichel's standing in the NHL Network's Top 20 Centers Right Now list shows how important he is to the Vegas Golden Knights

The Golden Knights have scoured the planet for a game-changing center for as long as possible. They could only rely on so many solid goal-scoring wingers for so long before they realized that they needed much more. So who else but Eichel to come over from the Buffalo Sabres to mitigate this problem? It might've been a gamble on the surface. But it was a much-needed gamble that paid off for Vegas.

Without Eichel, would the Golden Knights have the Stanley Cup in 2023? Would they compete for the Stanley Cup consistently or would the success story suddenly die off? That's a big question that skeptics must answer, especially when evaluating a player's contributions to the team. Eichel's on pace to break Jonathan Marchessault's all-time points record with the Golden Knights (417), which makes him even more important.

But let's not forget that Eichel could be joined by yet another center on this list. Imagine how good the Golden Knights could be if they had Eichel AND Larkin on the same team. They'd be one of the deepest NHL teams down the middle, making them a Stanley Cup contender.

Still, let's give credit to Eichel for making the NHL Network's annual list once again. He could be on his way to making history with Vegas as the team's first 100-point player and is already proving that he's valuable to the Golden Knights.

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