The relationship between Jack Eichel and the city of Buffalo hasn't been on the best of terms since the star forward requested a trade from the team last season.
Emotions and words were not held back on March 10, 2021, as Eichel returned to KeyBank Arena for the first time as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights.
After a thank-you video was played in the first period and a few cheered, the rest of the evening was mainly filled with boos when he touched the puck, and the animosity could be felt throughout the building.
"It was a nice tribute and there was plenty of people who were supporting me, and there was plenty of people who were booing me," said Eichel at the time. "They must just be booing because they wish I was still here, I don't know."
Eichel was a Sabre for seven years, during which time the word "rebuild" was heavily associated with the franchise. A change of scenery might have been what was needed, and after the boos rained down last year, Eichel seemed relieved just to have that game done and over with.
"I'm pretty happy it's over, just move on," Eichel said at the time. "It was about the loudest I've heard this place ever. Really. It only took seven years and me leaving for them to get into the game.”
Eichel returns again to Buffalo Thursday with the Golden Knights, who have the best record in the NHL, at 12-2. He has six goals and nine assists for 15 points in 14 games this season, and said he is feeling like his old self, mainly due to the neck procedure he underwent last season that started the strife with the Sabres organization.
He also admitted again that the reception from the crowd was a bit surprising and it caught him a bit off guard, which led to the comments he made postgame at the time.
“It was maybe a little bit surprising,” Eichel told reporters after morning skate on Thursday. “I don’t know why. I probably shouldn’t have been last year, but I was maybe a little bit surprised by the reception. I’m just like anyone else. I’m a human being. It was emotional for me like it probably was for them.
“Maybe I was a little bit hurt. That’s probably why I said the things I said.”
The trade has seemingly worked for both parties, as the Knights continue to play great hockey while Buffalo has emerged as a solid cohesive unit in the Atlantic Division. The Sabres received forwards Alex Tuch and Peyton Krebs, and two conditional draft picks for Eichel and a conditional pick.
"Really happy in my situation," he said. "And it's nice to see that they've been doing well."
The Golden Knights are winners of eight straight and will look to make it nine in a row Thursday in Buffalo.
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