The Eichel Tracker finishes the Eastern Conference trip strong

So, we're going to include Sunday's game against the Buffalo Sabres for this week's iteration of the Eichel Tracker. After all, we need to show you something that is honestly hilarious. Let's set the scene first.

The Olympic gold medalist scored a goal against his former team, the Buffalo Sabres, on Sunday. Mind you, he's had... a bit of history against the Sabres. You probably know that Buffalo doesn't like him because of the controversy surrounding his preferred surgery (Eichel wanted artificial disc replacement surgery, while Buffalo wanted spinal fusion for his neck issues).

So, how did Eichel's former team respond? Well, it's how you expected them to take their former star scoring a goal on them.

Well, who scored? Do you want to tell the class who got the second goal, Buffalo? Go on. Do tell everyone who scored the second (and game-winning) goal for the Golden Knights on Sunday.

Anyway, Eichel did much better after going pointless on Monday against the Boston Bruins. He scored that goal and added three assists to wrap up a successful four-game Eastern Conference trip. The result? Seven out of eight possible points, taking plenty of momentum home with the Golden Knights.

But what lies ahead for the main character as he treks his way towards the century mark? Can he hold strong and come up big as two crucial games loom large? Let's dive deep into the numbers and see what awaits Eichel in his pursuit of 100 or more points this season.

Where Jack Eichel stands in his pursuit of 100 or more points in a single season

Currently, Eichel is projected to hit 106 points in a season (35 goals and 71 assists). His position is starting to regress towards the mean, which indicates he's moving closer to the century mark. Things could get even bumpier with the upcoming five-game homestand.

The Golden Knights will face the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday, followed by the Nashville Predators on Friday. Those two teams will provide plenty of challenges for the Golden Knights, whether it's by aggressively back-checking or through solid goaltending. Therefore, the objective is simple for Eichel: stay the course and lean on your teammates.

So, how has Eichel done in his NHL career against the Predators? He has eight goals and 11 assists in 19 games against Nashville, all time. Meanwhile, the Olympic gold medalist has two goals and four assists in six career games against the Mammoth/Hockey Club. But digging deeper into the vault reveals that he's also had modest success against the defunct Arizona Coyotes (which 'relocated' to Utah). Here, he scored six goals and nine assists in 16 career games.

If Eichel can explode for a bigger week, that will build a reliable cushion throughout a treacherous November. The Golden Knights will also have games against the Dallas Stars (twice), the Edmonton Oilers (on the road), and the Montreal Canadiens. These won't be easy games, even if teams like the Oilers are suspect defensively.

Still, it would make life much easier for making Golden Knights history. It's also the perfect chance for Eichel to step up and be an even better franchise face. Not that he isn't an incredible one already. But it would put him in another stratosphere.

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