Buffalo Sabres - Fantasy News

Jack Eichel Fantasy Advice

by Jeff Gordon

1/24/18

NHL

Buffalo Sabres

Jack Eichel

The Buffalo Sabres aren't yielding much real-life value this season, stacking loss upon loss under first-year head coach Phil Housley. Their months-long slump has doomed them to another also-ran finish.

But they are creating fantasy hockey value with top center Jack Eichel leading the way.

During the first two-plus months of the season, Eichel was just OK. He scored 19 points (seven goals, 12 assists) with a minus-8 rating in his first 26 contests.

More recently, though, Eichel has produced points in seven consecutive games, scoring five goals and adding nine assists along the way. Dating back to December 15, when he scored a hat trick against Carolina, Eichel has recorded 12 goals and 13 assists during a 16-game stretch.

So although his Projected Fantasy Points value has climbed to 9.0, he topped that total six times in a recent seven-game run.

Overall, Eichel produced 49 points (20 goals, 29 assists) in his first 48 games this season. His minus-14 rating hurts, but he also has 172 shots on goal, 35 hits, 19 blocked shots and 25 takeaways.

After scoring 56 points in 81 games as a rookie and 57 points in 61 contests last year, Eichel is moving into the league's offensive elite this season. That was the expectation when the Sabres drafted him second overall in the 2015 NHL Draft.

"Jack's leading us the right way," Housley told reporters after Buffalo recently rolled over the Edmonton Oilers 5-0. "He's playing well on both ends. His defensive responsibilities, he's taken that to heart. And when he gets an opportunity to use his speed through the neutral zone and attack the game, he's done a terrific job."

Eichel has been clicking at even strength with winger Kyle Okposo and flourishing on a power-play unit that features Okposo, Sam Reinhart, Ryan O'Reilly and Rasmus Ristolainen.

Okposo has nine points overall (two goals, seven assists) in his last six games. O'Reilly has eight points (four goals, four assists) in his last seven efforts and Reinhart has six points (two goals, four assists) in his last four.

Back on the point, defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen has three goals and nine assists in his last 11 games. That leads all NHL defensemen during that period.

Buffalo's power play scored six times in 15 tries during a four-game surge. "We're all just doing our jobs," Eichel told the Buffalo News. "The more reps you get together, the more times you go out, the more comfortable you start to feel.

"It's good because you're seeing everybody score. You're seeing Risto score. [Okposo] got a couple on the power play this year. Everyone's kind of contributing."

Last year the Sabres had the league's top-ranked power play. For much of this season it has ranked near the league's bottom. But Housley finally has found player combinations that work.

"We're moving around pretty well," Eichel told the News. "There's a confidence right now when we go out there that we're going to succeed and get the job done. Earlier in the year, it was a bit frustrating part of our game, but right now it's something we're able to build off."

Given Buffalo's highly positive offensive trends, Eichel is definitely worth starting in Dober Fantasy Games.