
(Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)
Most NHL defensemen are handed assignments on which opposing player they’ll need to shadow before each game. On a nightly basis, Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo is tasked with defending stars, All-Stars, and even future Hall of Famers. On Thursday in San Jose, top defensive prospect Henry Thrun was given the challenge of covering Vegas’ superstar Jack Eichel.
His game transfers and it continued to transfer tonight. All of the things he was good at Harvard, he was good at here. He’s just got a real swagger to his game and he’s confident, and comfortable. He’s out there defending Jack Eichel and doing a good job. He got tested tonight, and he answered the bell. -David Quinn, SJ coach
On a nightly basis, Eichel can create problems for any team, especially a team with 42 fewer points than them. However, no matter how experienced or sought-after a defenseman is, VGK’s top center will need to be more of a factor. Against the Sharks, Eichel skated 21:40 minutes, had a secondary assist on the power play, was 33% from the dot, and was limited to one shot on net. A repeat performance on Thursday will not cut it against top pair d-men in the postseason. It’ll be even more of a problem without the security of captain Mark Stone for the early stages of the 2023 NHL playoffs.
Maybe Eichel and the Golden Knights were victims of their own success on Thursday night after finding out they were the first team to clinch a Western Conference playoff spot. It’s natural to relax and play down to the competition after reaching one of their season-long achievements. Tonight, against the red-hot Wild is not time for positive reflection.