Jack Eichel Signs Million-Dollar Extension with the Golden Knights
The talented ice hockey player, Jack Eichel, has secured his future with the Vegas Golden Knights by signing an eight-year contract extension. The agreement, recently announced, has an average annual value of $13.5 million. The news arrived just before the start of the Golden Knights’ season, who faced the Los Angeles Kings in Las Vegas. Negotiations between both parties intensified during training camp, with the aim of securing a long-term agreement before the start of the season. The extension will come into effect in the 2026-27 season, and Eichel will be 38 years old at the end of the contract. With this agreement, he is positioned as the third highest-paid player in the league, only behind Kirill Kaprizov and Leon Draisaitl. Eichel, 28, was in the final year of an eight-year contract with a $10 million impact, an agreement he originally signed with the Buffalo Sabres, the team that drafted him. In 2021, Buffalo traded Eichel to the Golden Knights. The agreement came after his desire to undergo an artificial disc replacement (ADR) to correct a neck injury, a procedure that had never been performed on an NHL player and was therefore considered risky. Eichel’s agent, Pat Brisson, facilitated the trade. The Golden Knights allowed Eichel to undergo the surgery, which was so successful that several other NHL players have had it done. The American center helped Vegas win its first Stanley Cup in 2023, scoring 26 points in 22 games during the playoffs run.Eichel is one of the six players already named to the United States team for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics. The Golden Knights are expected to be Stanley Cup contenders, especially after adding winger Mitch Marner this summer. Eichel and Marner are expected to play together on Vegas’s first line in their opening game against the Kings. This agreement reduces the list of potential big-name free agents for next season. Connor McDavid also signed a two-year extension with the Edmonton Oilers, and Kaprizov signed an eight-year contract with the Minnesota Wild before the start of the season.“About four years ago, Jack underwent the first ADR surgery for an active NHL player,” Brisson said. “He’s a pioneer. Vegas stepped up and helped make the process happen. They’ve won the Cup since then. It’s a great place for him, and he’s very happy with the decision.”
Pat Brisson
