LAKE PLACID, NY - AUGUST 02: Jack Eichel #9 of USA Blue is stopped by Thatcher Demko #1 of USA White during the 2014 USA Hockey Junior Evaluation Camp at Lake Placid Olympic Center on August 2, 2014 in Lake Placid, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — All he wanted to do was play hockey. By age two, Jack Eichel was walking around the house with a yellow mini-stick in his hand. By three, he had already started skating by pushing a crate around on the ice to maintain his balance.

When he was four, Eichel was told by minor hockey organizers in Chelmsford, Mass., that he was too young to join their program and would have to wait. He pestered his parents, Bob and Anne, to the point where they finally relented and had him enrolled across the state line in Nashua, N.H., where the rink was only three miles from their home.

“He was a pain in the neck,” said Bob, of Jack’s persistence. “We held him off for as long as possible.”

Having grown up in Melrose, Mass., a suburb of Boston, Bob Eichel was a huge fan of the Bruins. His favourite player – of course – was Bobby Orr. Putting Jack and his older sister Jessie in skates and passing on his love of the game was a no-brainer.

Bob would give Jack instructions such as “stretch your stride” and Jack would listen intently. It wasn’t uncommon to find Jack skating around in his little red snowsuit on one of the nearby ponds shooting pucks before school.

“He gave me all the hockey I wanted when I was young,” said the now 17-year-old of his dad. “We were always on the ice together and he’s been a huge influence on me.”

These days, Eichel’s skating stride is effortless and powerful. He is billed as the best American prospect to come out of the country since Mike Modano, and based on his play to date the hype is warranted. He is, by far, the best U.S. prospect eligible for the 2015 NHL draft and – along with Canadian star Connor McDavid – has been talked about as the potential top pick.

At last week’s U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camp for the 2015 world junior championships, the forward was a force against the likes of reigning champs Finland and silver-winning Sweden.

Against Finland, Eichel netted a goal and four assists. The young American’s innovation on ice included a jaw-dropping, spin-o-rama backhand pass to linemate Alex Tuch, who scored on the play.

At times it appeared as if he was toying with players on the other side. He was everywhere.

“I think it’s the long stride,” said Sonny Milano, Eichel’s Team USA teammate and childhood friend. “He’ll take one stride and it’ll be the equivalent of three strides for someone else. His speed is real deceptive, but he’s got it all – a great shot, smart player – he’s everything you want in a hockey player.”

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Although Eichel starting playing at a very early age, his rise through the ranks isn’t the result of 24/7, year-round devotion to hockey. His parents didn’t make hockey an all-consuming sport for their son. In the summer, there were no intense hockey camps, sport-specific training or dry land sessions. Instead, the Eichels wanted Jack to have many different experiences.

Bob says he and Anne made a conscious effort to limit Jack’s hockey time to keep him well-rounded and to try and make sure the game was fun, which also included playing defence.

Sports had always been a big part of their family. Both Bob and Anne are big baseball fans and Jessie, 21, rows crew for Merrimack College. As a result, Jack had very limited exposure to hockey in the summer, instead playing baseball, basketball and lacrosse.

In fact, Eichel didn’t have a single skating lesson until he was 13 when he started working with former Bruins skating coach John McLean.

“I always wanted to be on the ice, but my parents kind of held me back because they didn’t want to burn me out and have me on the ice too much,” said Eichel.

“When I got to the age when hockey became really serious, obviously I started playing throughout the summer. I think my parents did a really good job.”

It was when he hit his early teens that Eichel went though his first big growth spurt, shooting up from 5-foot-9 and 120-pounds to six feet and adding some 40 pounds to his frame. Almost overnight things started to fall into place.

Milano and Eichel met when they were teammates on the Jr. Bruins for a selects camp when they were around seven. Milano remembers they were in the ninth grade when Jack, always considered a good player, came into his own and shocked people with his development.

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