So it's the + in a trade that makes people say no?
I would gladly traded our first and Nico for Eichel if he is healthy.
He’s literally not healthy though. He has a herniated disk in neck plus different lingering injuries that have hampered his production in the last ~30 games of 2019-20 season and all 21 games this season. (He didn’t score 2 goals in 21 games after averaging +30 goals over his career because he wasn’t trying, that was the other guy.)
I don’t see how we’re remotely a sure thing to make the playoffs next season with a gimpy Eichel in the toughest division while sacrificing the assets we need to improve the defense. I don’t know what the price would be. I do think we should fix the biggest weaknesses and empty spots on this team rather than upgrading the positions that are already filled.
I don’t exactly what kind of person Eichel is but the team would have to make him happy, not just drag his ass to Jersey. It’s a big ego that they would have to accommodate and integrate into the lock-room. And he’s infamously not a good locker-room guy.
If it seemed liked he was one of the last missing pieces to making us a contender and/or he was healthy the trade could make some sense for this team right now. I don’t think either of those are true and Eichel isn’t going to be excited about being on a better bubble team next season. Look at the standings. Eichel can be pissy and unhappy here too, pretty much immediately. He wants to be on a much better team right now.
The Wild are, as tradition apparently demands, a solidly mediocre playoff team. They would have been in playoffs in 2019-20 if they didn’t battle it out with San Jose to see who could have the worst goaltending in the NHL. I don’t know how this will work out for them but they have a great chance to win the Eichel auction. People forget one thing, GM love love love trading stars to the other Conference.