Eichel was the No. 2 pick by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2015 NHL Draft, one pick behind McDavid, who went to the Edmonton Oilers. From 2015-21, he had 355 points (139 goals, 216 assists) in 375 games as the face of the Sabres.

In March 2021, Eichel hit his head against the boards during a game against the New York Islanders, resulting in a herniated disk in his neck that caused him to miss the final 33 games of the season. 

The Sabres were not comfortable with Eichel’s desire to have artificial disk replacement surgery, which had never been performed on an NHL player. Having asked for a trade, Eichel subsequently failed his physical prior to training camp in September and was stripped of his captaincy by then-Buffalo general manager Kevyn Adams.

On Nov. 4, 2021, Eichel was traded to Vegas, along with a third-round pick in the 2023 or 2024 NHL Draft, for forwards Peyton Krebs, Alex Tuch, a first-round pick in the 2022 or 2023 NHL Draft and a second-round pick in the 2023 or 2024 draft. 

The Golden Knights allowed Eichel to have the surgery he was seeking, which took place eight days after they acquired him. Since then, he’s averaged more than a point per game with 343 (127 goals, 216 assists) in 315 games and helped Vegas win the Cup in 2023.

Like Marner, a lack of postseason success — Buffalo did not qualify for the playoffs in his time there — initially left Eichel as a kind of a villain with Sabres fans after he left, a similar situation (or, as McCrimmon puts it, a “parallel one”) to that of Marner in Toronto. As such, one of the first people to reach out to Marner after the trade was Eichel. Winning, he told his new teammate, is the best way to drown out the noise.

“Look, I think everyone has their own story, right?” Eichel told NHL.com. “And Mitch has his own, and the things that he went through in Toronto. We’ve had a few conversations this year, and, you know, just kind of getting a better understanding of some of the stuff that he went through, and where he’s at now. 

“And listen, I mean, I don’t really need to help a guy like that when he comes here. He has such a great personality, he’s such a great hockey player, he fits in the locker room really easily. I’m sure he has a little bit of scar tissue from some of his experiences in Toronto, but with that being said, I think he came in here with just such a great attitude, and (he’s) so happy to be a part of this team, and we’re so happy to have him. And I think he’s just really enjoyed himself here this year. 

“In terms of the things that I think he endured in Toronto, I think it’s made him, you know, appreciate his situation now. If you ask Mitch, I’m sure he’s more than grateful for his time in Toronto and everything. I know he is, what that meant to him and his family to be able to play for the team that he grew up idolizing and everything like that. I think he’s just trying to live in the moment, and he’s happy in his current situation.”

Thanks, in part, to the support of his Golden Knights teammates.

“Jack’s been great,” Marner said. “He’s easy to talk to and to ask questions about stuff. I think obviously a lot of us have been traded from a different team that we were with for a while, so yeah, we leaned on each other throughout the year.

“I mean, nothing can change with the past. That’s something I always talk about, so I’m always in the present moment. As everything happened with the trade, all of our thoughts and stuff went right to Vegas and about how you know I can try to make this team better, how they can help me be a better player.

“I had to flip the page right away.”

Almost a year later, McCrimmon suggests those Maple Leafs fans who remain bitter with Marner should do the same.

Less than 48 hours after Vegas eliminated the high-powered Colorado Avalanche in a surprising four-game sweep in the Western Conference Final last week, the GM was a guest on TSN radio. When the subject of Marner came up, as it always seems to in the Toronto market, McCrimmon candidly let his feelings be known about the entire subject.

“I know it’s Toronto. I know it’s Mitch Marner. I know it’s polarizing, but for me, it’s a little bit about, the guy’s ex-girlfriend, moving away and doing well,” he said.

“At some point, you’ve got to get over it.”

* * * * 

Signature moments.

That had always been yet another narrative about the Core Four in Toronto, that they could never come through on big stages when it mattered most.

That has changed over the past 16 months, at least for Marner, who’s produced a handful in that span.

Marner’s run started at the 4 Nations Face-Off in February 2025, when he scored in overtime for Team Canada against Team Sweden in the preliminary round, then set up McDavid for a 3-2 overtime win against Team USA in the championship game.

He represented Canada again this past February at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, where he provided more overtime heroics, scoring the winner in a 4-3 victory against Team Czechia in the quarterfinals.

“It’s the ‘it’ factor, man. Mitch Marner’s got it,” Canada coach Jon Cooper said after the game. “He doesn’t disappoint. Sometimes your hair falls out at times, but in the end he never disappoints.”

Shea Theodore saw it firsthand. The Golden Knights defenseman was Marner’s teammate at 4 Nations and the Olympics.

“He’s an unbelievable player,” Theodore said. “I think you see what he does with the puck, you see what he does without the puck. 

“He’s played in a lot of big games. I think everything I’ve seen, he’s made some really big-time plays, and he’s a leader on this team for sure. And it’s fun to watch.”