Jack Eichel Reaches 700 Career Points on Opening Night

by Ryan Rose

What Happened

The Golden Knights opened their 10th season on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, at T-Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip. Vegas won 5-2. Victor Olofsson scored on the power play, rookie Trevor Connelly scored in his NHL debut, and Eichel, Noah Hanifin and Mark Stone (into an empty net) added the rest. Carter Hart made 24 saves in goal, and Shea Theodore had two assists.

Eichel's night was the story inside the story. He finished with one goal and two assists. The goal came in the second period, and it was his 700th career point. The Associated Press recap, published on theScore, says the three points brought him to 701 by the end of the night.

The goal also came at an important moment. Chicago's Jordan Greenway had just scored to cut the Vegas lead. About three minutes later, Eichel's line spent two straight shifts pinning the Blackhawks in their own end. The last one was a 48-second cycle. It ended when Ivan Barbashev slid a pass from below the goal line and Eichel finished it to make the score 3-1. That swing took the air out of Chicago's comeback.

The rest of the night went Vegas's way too. Hanifin scored in the third period to push the lead back out after Kane got one for Chicago, and Stone sealed it with the empty-net goal late. Chicago played without its young star Connor Bedard, who is recovering from shoulder surgery and is expected back by late October, according to the AP. Blackhawks goalie Spencer Knight made 32 saves, which tells you how much Vegas controlled the puck.

For Craig, it was his first win as head coach of the Golden Knights. The AP noted that he spent six seasons as an assistant in Vegas and three seasons coaching the team's minor league club in Henderson before getting the top job. Having his best player deliver a three-point night in his first game behind the bench was about as good a start as a new coach could ask for.

The team's official game recap on VegasGoldenKnights.com added another piece of history. Eichel became the third player in NHL history to record a three-point night in three straight season openers. So this was not a one-time thing. He has made a habit of starting seasons fast.

The Review-Journal put the milestone in context. Eichel is the 40th American-born player to reach 700 points. He is the ninth American to do it in fewer than 700 games. The only other active players on that short list are Chicago's Patrick Kane, who happened to be on the ice for the other team Tuesday, and Toronto's Auston Matthews. Kane scored for Chicago in the third period, in his return to the franchise where he won three Stanley Cups.

If he stays healthy, Eichel will play his 700th NHL game on Saturday, Oct. 17, against the Pittsburgh Penguins. That is a home game at T-Mobile Arena with a 7 p.m. start, according to the Season X schedule published by KTNV.

Jack Eichel of the Vegas Golden Knights during pregame warmups in February 2026

Why It Matters to Las Vegas Residents

Some sports numbers are just trivia. This one is a little different, because of who Eichel is to this city. He is the center the Golden Knights built around after they traded for him in November 2021. He was a key part of the 2023 Stanley Cup team. And in October 2025, he signed an eight-year, $108 million contract extension that starts this season and runs through 2033-34, according to the team's own website. In plain terms, the face of the franchise is locked in here for a long time.

The new deal carries a $13.5 million average annual value, up from the $10 million cap hit on the eight-year contract he first signed in Buffalo. The team's website says the extension was signed on Oct. 8, 2025, and that last season was the final year of his old contract. So Season X is the first year of the new deal, and he opened it with a milestone.

That matters to local fans in a practical way. When a team's best player is signed long term, the team can plan around him. Fans who buy season tickets, or who have kids growing up wearing a No. 9 jersey, know he is not leaving next summer. For a young sports town like Las Vegas, that kind of stability helps build the habits and loyalty that older hockey cities took decades to form.

It also matters because of the way he got here. Coach Ryan Craig called him "an elite 200-foot player," which is hockey talk for a player who works hard at both ends of the ice, not just on offense. The Review-Journal noted that Eichel has posted back-to-back 90-point seasons and missed only 13 games over those two years, and three of those were for rest. For a player whose early years were defined by injury, that durability is its own milestone.

And for the thousands of Las Vegas families who pack T-Mobile Arena, the milestone happened at home. Opening night drew 17,838 fans, and the 700th point came in front of them, not on the road in another time zone. Local fans got to see it live. That is part of what makes a hometown team feel like a hometown team.

There is also a youth hockey angle. Rinks around the valley are full of kids who have only ever known the Golden Knights as a winning, stable team. Players like Eichel give those kids someone to watch closely: how he skates, how he handles the puck, how he plays defense. Craig put it this way: "I think we saw it with how he can skate, how he can get to certain areas." That is the kind of thing a youth coach points to on a Saturday morning.

Background and History

Eichel was born in North Chelmsford, Massachusetts, and the Buffalo Sabres picked him second overall in the 2015 NHL Draft. He played his first several seasons in Buffalo and served as the team's captain. Then things fell apart. The Review-Journal describes a neck injury that cost him an entire calendar year and caused so much friction that he was stripped of the captaincy in Buffalo.

On Nov. 4, 2021, the Golden Knights traded for him. Vegas received Eichel and a 2023 third-round pick. Buffalo received forwards Alex Tuch and Peyton Krebs, a 2022 first-round pick and a 2023 second-round pick. At the time, it was a big bet on a player who had not yet played a game for Vegas and was still recovering from surgery.

The first two full seasons in Las Vegas were not smooth. He missed 34 games over that stretch, and his scoring pace was well below where it is now. But the 2022-23 season ended with the Golden Knights winning the Stanley Cup, and the bet paid off in the biggest way possible. Since then, Eichel has grown into what the Review-Journal calls the "elite centerman threshold," with consecutive 90-point seasons.

Craig has been around for much of that growth. He worked with Eichel for a year and a half as a Golden Knights assistant before taking over the Henderson Silver Knights, the team's minor league club, where he coached for three seasons. Now he is Eichel's fourth head coach in Vegas. "I feel that I understand how I can push Jack, how I can hold him accountable," Craig told the Review-Journal. "He expects that out of me. A directness from both of us."

Eichel credits his surroundings. "I've been really lucky and grateful to be part of this organization," he said. "I think those (milestones) just come kind of organically. I've played with some great players in my career."

What Happens Next

The next marker is games played. Eichel is on track to play his 700th NHL game on Saturday, Oct. 17, when the Golden Knights host the Pittsburgh Penguins at T-Mobile Arena at 7 p.m. That assumes he stays healthy and in the lineup for every game between now and then.

Before that, Vegas has a busy October. The KTNV schedule shows home games on Oct. 2 against Anaheim, Oct. 8 against Toronto, Oct. 10 against Los Angeles and Oct. 15 against Calgary, with road trips to Vancouver, Seattle, Minnesota and Nashville mixed in. After the Pittsburgh game, the Golden Knights host Tampa Bay on Oct. 20 at 7:30 p.m. That gives local fans several chances to see him early in the season.

On the ice, the team is still settling in under a new coach. Eichel was honest about the opener. "I thought there was a lot of good things," he said. "Some stuff to clean up. It's the first game of the year." He added that it was not the team's "prettiest effort," but that the group expects to get better. Watch how Craig uses Eichel's line and whether that fast start holds up through the first homestand and road trip.

There is also the bigger picture. Eichel turns 30 in late October, and his new contract runs into his late 30s. If he keeps his recent pace, the next round-number milestones will start to come into view over the next few seasons. Every one of them will likely happen in a Golden Knights jersey, and many of them at T-Mobile Arena. For a franchise that is only 10 years old, that is a new kind of history.

Golden Knights head coach Ryan Craig stands behind the bench with Jack Eichel seated in front during the Season X opener

Ryan's Take

I talk with a lot of people who are thinking about moving to Las Vegas, and the Golden Knights come up more than you might expect. People want to know if this feels like a real place to live, not just a place to visit. A pro team with a homegrown fan base, a Stanley Cup banner and a star player signed through 2033-34 is one small sign that it does. It tells people this city has roots, traditions and a calendar that locals plan their lives around.

I also think Eichel's story fits Las Vegas. He came here after things went badly somewhere else. He got healthy, went to work and became a big part of the community. A lot of the families I help buy homes have their own version of that story: a fresh start in Summerlin, Henderson or the southwest valley. On game nights, you see those same families in gold jerseys at the arena, at watch parties and at local youth rinks. That shared identity is part of what makes a neighborhood feel like home, and it is one reason I like living and working here.

One more practical note for anyone house hunting. If going to games matters to you, think about the drive. T-Mobile Arena sits just off the Strip, and a weeknight 7 p.m. puck drop means fighting rush hour and event traffic. Buyers who plan to be regulars often weigh how close a neighborhood is to the 215, the I-15 or a quick surface route to the Strip. It is a small thing, but it is the kind of lifestyle detail I like to talk through with clients before they fall in love with a house on the far edge of the valley.

What You Can Do

If you want to be in the building for Eichel's 700th game, circle Saturday, Oct. 17, against Pittsburgh at T-Mobile Arena. The game starts at 7 p.m. Tickets are sold through the Golden Knights' official website. Plan for Strip traffic on a Saturday night and give yourself extra time to park or get a ride.

If a night at the arena is not in the budget, there are other ways to follow along. Watch the October home games from a local sports bar or a friend's living room, and check the team's official site for recaps and highlights. For families with young players, a Henderson Silver Knights game at Lifeguard Arena in Henderson is another way to watch pro hockey close to home and see the players who could be the next wave in Vegas.

And if you have a young skater at home, use this as a teaching moment. Pull up the highlight of Eichel's goal and talk about the 48-second shift that set it up. The goal is the fun part, but the work before it is what young players can copy.

Have questions about how this affects your home or neighborhood? Reach out to Ryan Rose or text/call 702-747-5921 anytime. Ryan Rose | Real Broker, LLC | 702-747-5921 | ryan@rosehomeslv.com | rosehomeslv.com