8 years for Eichel: Center inks $108 million deal to stay with Knights

It was never a question of if the Golden Knights would sign center Jack Eichel to the largest contract in franchise history. It was only a matter of when.

The two sides finished the deal Wednesday, with Eichel signing an eight-year extension with the Knights with an average annual value of $13.5 million. The deal will give him the third-largest cap hit in NHL history next season, behind only Minnesota Wild left wing Kirill Kaprizov ($17 million) and Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl ($14 million).

Eichel, 28, scored a career-high 94 points last season and finished fifth in the Hart Trophy voting for NHL MVP. He has 253 points in 241 games with the Knights and helped the team win the Stanley Cup in 2023.

“It’s a phenomenal place to play hockey and live and a community to be a part of,” Eichel said May 16. “It’s a great group of people to come to work with every day. Can’t say enough about my teammates and the people in this building and the people that make this organization what it is. Super proud to be part of this organization and this city and represent the Vegas Golden Knights.”

Eichel, a native of North Chelmsford, Massachusetts, is entering the final season of the eight-year, $80 million extension he signed with the Buffalo Sabres in October 2017.

He was traded to the Knights in November 2021 following a dispute with the Sabres over how to treat a herniated disk in his neck. Eichel, who was selected No. 2 overall in the 2015 draft by Buffalo, preferred to undergo an artificial disk replacement, a surgery that had never been done on an NHL player before.

The Knights allowed him to get the procedure and he’s been a two-way star for the organization ever since. He had 26 points in 22 games during the team’s run to a championship in 2023, the most in the NHL that postseason.

Eichel’s 94 points and 66 assists this past year were both franchise records. He also helped Team USA finish runner-up at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February, and was one of the first six players named to his country’s roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

Eichel’s cap hit will remain $10 million this season, then his new contract will kick in for 2026-27. The upper limit of the NHL’s salary cap is expected to increase from $95.5 million to $104 million next year.

Eichel was one of a number of star players that signed extensions leading up to the season rather than testing free agency July 1.

Kaprizov inked his record eight-year, $136 million contract on Sept. 30. Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid, who was selected one pick ahead of Eichel in 2015, signed a two-year, $25 million extension Monday.

Winnipeg Jets left wing Kyle Connor got an eight-year, $96 million deal from his team Wednesday morning.

The Knights, with Eichel signed, will have about $5.23 million in cap space next season with 10 forwards, six defenseman and goaltender Adin Hill under contract. They will gain an extra $8.8 million in flexibility if defenseman Alex Pietrangelo, who has stepped away from hockey due to a serious hip injury, remains unable to play.

General manager Kelly McCrimmon said in May getting Eichel signed was “an important order of business for us.”

“The guy is a tremendous player and one of the top guys in the NHL,” McCrimmon said. “He’s got great character, great leadership. You see night in, night out what he does for our team.”

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.