Jack Eichel spent most of his childhood and teenage years in Massachusetts, specifically Boston. The Vegas Golden Knights megastar wreaked havoc on the amateur scene with his best buddy, Noah Hanifin. Then, he won a Hobey Baker Memorial Award with the Boston University Terriers in 2015.
Thursday will have those memories flooding back when Eichel takes on the Boston Bruins. He'll take on a team that was immersed in his childhood, alongside the Boston Red Sox. That has come with a wave of rumors surrounding the Bruins picking up the superstar center.
I mean, who else is going to replace Patrice Bergeron? It can't possibly be a guy like Cody Glass, right? Still, all that came to a crashing halt when the Golden Knights acquired Eichel and eventually signed him to an eight-year extension. Oh well, the hopes of having the hero play for the local team will be bestowed upon someone else.
Still, it's worth looking at the Olympian's earlier years and seeing how he got here. It's time that we look at how everyone's favorite "work from home" guy got here, starting with his amateur days. Are you ready to kick it with the Dropkick Murphys and ship up to Boston?
Looking at Jack Eichel's early days in Boston before he joins the Vegas Golden Knights
Eichel's youth team was the Dual State River Hawks from Tyngsboro, Massachusetts. He made his mark with the Boston Jr. Bruins, scoring 54 goals and 68 assists in two EmJHL seasons (76 games). Then came his time with the U.S. National Team that started in 2012-13. Here, he scored 19 goals and 15 assists with the U17 team, following that up with 10 goals and eight assists in 22 games with the U18 team.
His next season saw a breakout campaign of sorts, where Eichel scored 38 goals and 49 assists in 53 games with the U18 team. He also made a massive statement in the World Junior Championship (18), scoring five goals and five assists in seven games. But his next season is where he'd truly break out, specifically with the Boston University Terriers.
In 2014-15, Eichel scored 26 goals and 45 assists in 40 games, winning the Hobey Baker award in the process. He also got the call-up to the World Championship squad and represented the United States. Here, he scored two goals and five assists in 10 games. Imagine jumping from college to play against superstars like Sidney Crosby and... Jaromir Jagr.
After that came his controversial time with the Buffalo Sabres, where he had a dispute over how to get his neck surgery. No longer is he enjoying the friendly confines of Boston-area sports and success. Instead, he got a cold dose of reality in Buffalo before Kelly McCrimmon came a-callin'.
Without McCrimmon, Eichel would still be enthralled in a world of hurt (at least, for a few more years). But he can thank his Boston-area upbringing for preparing him for future success. Those lessons learned in Massachusetts even led him to hoist... the Stanley Cup.
It's like hitting a home run at Fenway Park.