Let's be honest for a second. Jack Eichel is going through it right now. The Vegas Golden Knights center hasn't scored in his last five games, leaving fans to wonder how hard he partied with Team U.S.A. Like, this isn't characteristic of the guy to go this long without a point.
Let's also be honest for a second on this front: that'll be tough to achieve against the Winnipeg Jets. Obviously, you're playing on the road and you need to dig deep for that extra energy. But there's also a guy named Connor Hellebuyck in net. He's a Hart Memorial Trophy winner and it's tough to bury pucks past him.
Better get those prayers up for your boy because Eichel's gonna need 'em.
That's especially true when looking at Eichel's career stats against the Jets. Mind you, this was the team that was formerly known as the Atlanta Thrashers (this iteration, that is). They've seen their fair share of mediocre years and abysmal play, which makes matters much more surprising.
So, let's get ready to hear the bad news. How bad has Jack Eichel done in his career against the Jets? Have any great games stood out when he played against Winnipeg? Hide your wife and your kids because this is going to get extremely scary.
Jack Eichel has nine goals and seven assists in 20 career games against the Winnipeg Jets
Normally, Eichel's the type of player to post good career stats against an NHL team. He'll typically average a point or more per game, dominating a foe in his typical Eichel fashion. But not the Jets. Instead, he's averaged under a point per game during his NHL career against Winnipeg (Eichel has 0.80 points per game against the Jets).
In fact, his recent track record hasn't been exceptionally well. His last four games have seen him only notch three assists, with half of those games resulting in goose eggs. His last goal against the Jets came on March 28, 2024, where he scored a third-period goal in a 4-1 win.
To make things worse, the Golden Knights center only has four multi-point games in his career against Winnipeg. He has nine instances of not getting a single point in a game, which accounts for nearly half his games. His best game came during his Buffalo Sabre days on January 9, 2018. Here, he scored two goals and an assist in a 7-4 loss.
I mean, it makes a little bit of sense when you think about it. The Jets have Connor Hellebuyck and also have other superstars on their team, including Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele. That makes life extra hard for a player like Eichel to break out of a slump.
Still, that's not to say that Eichel can't do just that on Tuesday. After all, this is the franchise face that we're talking about here. However, fans shouldn't expect life to be easy for the American Olympian when he steps on the ice in Manitoba.