NORTH CHELMSFORD, Mass. — The search for the real Jack Eichel has to begin in this community of 9,300 about 30 miles northwest of Boston. But the breadcrumbs are few.
What is it, exactly, that made Eichel into a person who, as his friend Dan Ferri says, was “obsessed” with being an NHL player? There are no pushy stage parents to be found here. Bob and Anne Eichel, by all accounts, never pressured their son into playing hockey.
If they were only interested in their son’s financial success, they haven’t done a good job of showing it since Eichel was selected second overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2015 NHL draft.