The Minnesota Wild are back out of Jack Eichel trade talks, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic.
While the Wild have been connected to Eichel for weeks, they’re apparently balking at the high asking price.
There were always obstacles attached to the Wild’s reported pursuit of Eichel. The Sabres are reportedly seeking multiple top prospects and high draft picks, which would further weaken Minnesota’s roster.
On top of that, the Wild have a lot of dead money on the books. After buying out Ryan Super and Zach Parise, they have $4.6 million in dead cap money this season, with the total exploding to $12.6 million in 2022-23 and $14.6 million in 2023-24 and 2024-25.
Eichel is owed $10 million annually for the next five years.
There are still a number of teams pursuing Eichel, but the Sabres haven’t identified a top suitor, as TSN hockey insider Pierre LeBrun reported on Wednesday.
Last week on WGR, LeBrun's cohort at TSN, Darren Dreger said he thought it was imperative for the Sabres to deal Eichel before the draft. Obviously, that didn’t happen, and now it's believed that a potential move isn't imminent.
"It's almost like Jack Eichel has become the forgotten superstar in this process." Dreger said during TSN's "Free Agency Frenzy" on Wednesday. "There's some considerable amount of interest in Jack Eichel, as one would expect. But the [follow up] hasn't really developed over the last number of days.
"Kevyn Adams of the Sabres is in constant communication with those that have been persistent with their interest. I'm looking at Minnesota, Los Angeles Kings (to some degree), the New York Rangers, there are other tire kickers that are involved. There doesn't feel that there's anything imminent, at this point, but as you get through free agency, perhaps a team that doesn't get the piece that they're looking for from the free agent market either circles back or engages with Kevyn Adams and the Buffalo Sabres. It's definitely something that we're continuing to monitor and watch, because I would say the frustration level is starting to develop on the player's side of things, as well."
Now we’ll see if the Sabres lower their demands.
If they don’t, they could be faced with the prospect of an unhappy Eichel reporting to training camp some time in September.
While Eichel remains one of the league’s most talented young stars, he’s coming off a brutal herniated disk injury, which impacts his value.
On the ice, Eichel endured his worst season as a professional, scoring just two goals and adding 16 assists for 18 points in 21 games.
The Sabres must convince teams that Eichel is healthy and last year was an anomaly, while asking for a heap of assets in return.
That’s turning out to be a difficult endeavor.
