Blackhawks: The pros and cons of calling up Lukas Reichel

The cons of calling up Lukas Reichel now.

1. Rushing him up like a lot of other prospects. 

The Blackhawks have rushed a lot of young prospects in the past. I know that those decision-makers are not here anymore, but the fact is that Adam Boqvist, Henri Jokiharju, Teuvo Teravainen, Nick Schmaltz, and Ryan Hartman are all no longer with the team despite being drafted in the first round.

Moving up Reichel might be rushing his development for little reward during a season that has already started off so poorly.

2. Takes a spot away from a potential trade piece.

If the Hawks were to call up Reichel he would obviously be in the lineup. The team wouldn’t give Reichel a spot in the lineup only for it to be the 13th forward not playing very often. If Reichel is on the roster he will be in the lineup eating up some minutes with the team. That might not be the best thing for a team wanting to take this time to give guys like Ryan Carpenter and Adam Gaudette as much ice time as possible to bring up their trade value ahead of the deadline later this season.

3. Wait until the decision-makers are in place. 

Derek King and Kyle Davidson both have the word interim next to their titles of coach and general manager. They are not the ones making the decisions for the franchise in the long term, which means they would be better off waiting for whoever will be here in the long haul to call up Reichel.

Reichel is a player that can be with this team for the next ten-plus seasons. Rather than let this current group of management stunt his development by calling him up before he is ready, they should wait for the next group of people to come in and direct the team.

What the Blackhawks should do.

The Blackhawks should wait until later in the year before calling up Reichel. Reichel should keep getting top-line minutes in the AHL facing off against the best of the best competition he possibly can in the AHL.

This move would be the right call for the organization as they continue to struggle on ice in the NHL. Rather than risk giving Reichel the wrong habits by playing on a struggling team, he can be in his own world with the IceHogs then join the organization after the deadline for the remainder of the season.

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Lukas Reichel is still only 19 years old. He has a lot of hockey ahead of him, and there is no reason to rush that young player into the NHL anytime soon. Although it will be fun to watch his highlights all season long with the IceHogs. Hopefully, he can score another hat trick soon!