Golden Knights' Jack Eichel Could Hit the Open Market

The Vegas Golden Knights love doing business their way and to this point, it's worked out in spades. They've landed the big prize in Mitch Marner this summer, and they'll certainly be a heavy favorite to make the Western Conference Final this upcoming season. After that, what should we expect?

Anthony DiMarco of Daily Faceoff released his recent mail bag, and was asked about the future of Jack Eichel in Vegas. Turns out it's not a given that Eichel is going to re-sign a big ticket to stay long term on the Vegas strip. According to DiMarco, this could be an interesting story to watch unfold this season and into next summer.

Eventually something is going to have to give in Vegas. Yes, Eichel likely isn’t the guy the Knights eventually bring the hammer down on, but after signing Mitch Marner to a major contract with an AAV of $12 million, can they really afford to hand out a major deal to another forward? With the rising salary cap, there is reason to believe that Eichel’s AAV could soar past the $12.6 million benchmark the Colorado Avalanche set with Nathan MacKinnon, which has since been exceeded by the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Auston Matthews and Edmonton Oilers‘ Leon Draisaitl as fellow centers.

Eichel scored a career high 94 points in 77 games last season, and added another 10 points in 11 Stanley Cup Playoff games. With Marner joining his wing, the numbers could go way up, as it's going to be very fun to watch these two superstars go to work together. Marner showed for close to a decade he can create serious chemistry with an elite center in Auston Matthews, so with the similarities between the two, it will be interesting to see how much Eichel's game complements Marner's.

However, the bigger story here is Eichel's future in Vegas. Keep an eye on how things play out this season, because at the end of the day, it doesn't sound like a given that a contract extension gets announce in-season.

Photo credit:  Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images