Chris Johnston: The Jack Eichel saga has become a pain for both sides, with the Sabres centre likely to miss his age-25 season

We’ve gone past the point where anyone can emerge from the stalemate between Jack Eichel and the Buffalo Sabres as a winner.

There may be a moral victory to be found for the star centre in sticking to his guns and eventually getting a first-of-its-kind neck procedure done, but it seems increasingly likely that the battle will come at the cost of his age-25 NHL season and a trip to the Beijing Olympics.

There can be no positive outcome for the Sabres after seeing the face of the franchise so quickly turned into a depreciating asset. Whatever was on the table for an Eichel trade in late July isn’t getting any better as his situation drags on unresolved.

This is a remarkable story for all of the wrong reasons.

Eichel is one of the NHL’s bright lights, and has been limited to just 21 games over the last 19 months because of the pandemic and his neck injury. When he’ll play his next one remains an open question.

At issue is the treatment of a herniated disc in his neck. The Sabres’ medical team wants Eichel to undergo an anterior cervical discectomy with fusion to alleviate the discomfort he is experiencing. It’s a commonly prescribed surgery for those with his injury.

Eichel remains steadfast in preferring a disc replacement procedure that has never been done on an NHL player. That would see an artificial disc placed in his neck and comes with the promise of a shorter rehab time, the potential for less loss of motion and a lowered possible need for future surgeries.

He has doctors endorsing that treatment plan, but the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement puts the final say in the hands of teams. And the Sabres haven’t rethought their desire for him to undergo a fusion that would come with an expected six-month recovery period.

“We have absolute trust in our doctors. They are the medical experts,” Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams told reporters last month. “They’ve been consistent since Day 1. They’ve never wavered from what they think should be the next step, and if something else was done, they would be uncomfortable with it.”

This is the rock and the hard place.

Eichel, entering the fourth year of an $80-million (U.S.) contract, has already been stripped of his captaincy by the Sabres. He has long since requested a trade out of town. This isn’t a productive relationship. But time wastes away as long as the player and team remain in disagreement over a treatment plan.

The Eichel stalemate was reportedly what fuelled Robin Lehner’s tweetstorm over the weekend, with allegations of medical malpractice against NHL teams. The Vegas Golden Knights goaltender wanted to draw attention to the situation faced by his former teammate and has since agreed to keep things in-house following a meeting with league officials.

Lehner tweeted about Eichel at the NHL’s official account: “Is it good to keep a generational player out of the league? His body his choice. Do what’s right.”

Time might be the only factor that can break this impasse. Perhaps one side or the other reconsiders its position on the surgery as more information is exchanged, although that seems unlikely given how dug in they are.

Failing that, the Sabres need to find a trade partner that is comfortable with Eichel having the disc replacement surgery. That is also easier said than done. Under those circumstances, the acquiring team would have to be comfortable assuming any perceived risk with the procedure and also be willing to put together a trade package Buffalo accepts while being able to accommodate Eichel’s $10-million cap hit.

There are believed to be three teams still with interest in Eichel, according to sources, but it’s not clear if any of them can click all of those boxes.

Remember that we’re talking about a former No. 2 overall draft pick who has scored 0.95 points per game while playing on overmatched Sabres outfits. The reward could be huge if he can return to the player he once was.

Eichel would almost certainly have played a major role for USA Hockey at the upcoming Olympics but the odds of him being back on the ice by February diminish with each passing day. In fact, an informal poll of NHL executives revealed that they believe it’s most likely an Eichel trade doesn’t happen until this coming off-season — something that would be complicated by the fact that he gains a no-movement clause on July 1.

There’s only so much the player can do to try to speed things up.

He could still have the NHL Players’ Association file a grievance on his behalf, but that would require him to prove that the Sabres haven’t properly considered his preferred surgical option. Nothing can be done if they consider it and come away with a difference of opinion.

So Eichel sits.

And the Sabres look poised to struggle.

They’re locked in an unhappy union with no end in sight.

Chris Johnston is a Toronto-based journalist with a new gaming company. His work will be seen on the website and app for the new gaming company, and also in the Toronto Star. Follow him on Twitter: @reporterchris