Eichel's latest goal puts him among Sabres royalty
Watching his Buffalo Sabres blow a 3-0 lead to the Pittsburgh Penguins probably ruined his day, but Jack Eichel added an impressive accolade to his young resume in the process.
Eichel extended his active point streak to a career-long 10 games with his goal in the first period; it was his 16th of the season and 40th of his career. That may seem a tad irrelevant, but he's only 20-years-old, and only a select few players in the history of the Sabres franchise have enjoyed such a prolific start to their careers.
Eichel: 6th to get 40 goals w/the #Sabres before age 21- joins Pierre Turgeon, Phil Housley, Dave Andreychuk, Rick Martin, Gilbert Perreault
— StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) March 5, 2017
Rick Martin's and Gilbert Perreault's numbers were retired by Buffalo, while Pierre Turgeon, Phil Housley, and Dave Andreychuk all went on to amass 1,000-point careers. Not a bad list.
Eichel also became just the 10th American-born player to score 40 goals before turning 21, and the first to do so since Patrick Kane in 2009.
Despite falling on hard times again this season, it appears the future of the Sabres is indeed in good hands with Eichel at the helm.