The Buffalo Sabres are nearing ticket sales of 15,000 for Friday’s Blue & Gold scrimmage. The tickets, which run $10 a pop, will get fans their first glimpse of Jack Eichel as his Sabres prospect squad takes on another featuring 2014 second overall pick Sam Reinhart.
While a final count has yet to be determined, the Buffalo Sabres are set to welcome a crowd for Jack Eichel’s scrimmage debut that rivals a home game for the Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, Arizona Coyotes or even the Winnipeg Jets.
That’s right: the Sabres are expecting somewhere in the neighborhood of 13,000 to 15,000 fans to be in attendance Friday when a prospect team featuring Eichel, the second overall selection in the 2015 draft, takes on another squad that starring 2014 second overall pick Sam Reinhart.
Suffice to say, Buffalo’s a tad excited. Then again, so is Eichel.
“It seems like I’ve been doing the media tour, doing a million things and there’s nothing I love more than to just play hockey,” Eichel told The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington. “Nothing I love more than preparing for a game and just playing. The atmosphere and the feeling of playing against another team and trying to win a game…I imagine there will be a lot of people here and I can’t wait for the opportunity.”
The Sabres are cashing in on Eichelmania, too, as the team is charging $10 a seat to get in to the Blue & Gold scrimmage, which will be a three-period, 60-minute contest between the Sabres’ prospects. At somewhere in the neighborhood of 14,000 fans, that’s a significant chunk of change coming Buffalo’s way.
One would imagine that more than a few Eichel jerseys – he announced Friday he’ll be wearing No. 15 for the club – will be on display, and up for sale, at the Friday evening game, too.
The Buffalo News’ John Vogl reports Eichel will suit up on a squad that features former Boston University teammate Evan Rodrigues and Nick Baptiste. Reinhart’s squad will have Hudson Fasching and William Carrier.
