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Chicago Blackhawks Player Grades: Diving into Lukas Reichel's subpar season

By Ethan Gawronski |
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Chicago Blackhawks v Ottawa Senators / Chris Tanouye/Freestyle Photo/GettyImages
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When the Chicago Blackhawks 2023-24 season was about to be underway, the excitement around the young players was through the roof. With Connor Bedard coming into the NHL after being the Blackhawks' first-overall pick in 2023, others such as Kevin Korchinski, Alex Vlasic, and Lukas Reichel were expected to kickstart the youth movement in Chicago.

Lukas Reichel had been developing his game with the Rockford IceHogs (the Hawks' AHL affiliate) for the previous two seasons, and his first full season with the Blackhawks felt long awaited. The German forward was selected 17th overall by the Blackhawks in the 2020 NHL Draft, spending his post-draft season playing for Eisbären Berlin in the DEL, Germany's top professional league. After posting 27 points in 38 DEL games, Reichel proved himself to be the best prospect in the Blackhawks system.

Despite Reichel's smaller frame, the Blackhawks were intrigued by his skill and speed, two attributes that were lacking amongst the team's prospect pool at the time. His strong play carried over to the North American game once he arrived in Rockford for his first AHL season. Reichel's skill was apparent from day one as he finished with 57 points in 56 games, building more and more excitement for the young forward.

During his debut AHL season with the IceHogs, many began to question if Reichel would get called up to the Blackhawks to get his first taste of NHL action. Those questions were put to rest as Reichel played an eleven game stint in the NHL which he had one assist, showing that he was not quite ready to make the jump to the Blackhawks roster full-time.

Reichel spent the majority of the 2022-23 season in Rockford where he continued to be a top scorer in the AHL at such a young age. He was called up to the Blackhawks once again with a successful 23-game stint where he tallied 15 points in 23 games. Reichel's play made fans eager to see what was to come from him when the next season began, making him a near guarantee to be on the opening night roster.

Here is how Lukas Reichel's much anticipated first full NHL season played out...

As training camp started for the Blackhawks, many were interested to see which line combinations would be seen the most leading up to opening night. Lukas Reichel's successful run last season saw him build chemistry as a left-winger alongside Andreas Athanasiou and Philipp Kurashev. Considering Reichel's frame of six feet tall and 170 pounds, the belief was that he would be a better fit as a winger in the NHL.

However, Reichel began training camp as a center and stayed there through the early goings of the NHL season. After primarily playing center in Rockford, the Blackhawks coaching staff wanted to see if he was an option to play the position at a higher level. This experiment showed a different side to Reichel's game that had not yet been seen by him. The responsibility a center holds in the defensive zone made Reichel play overly cautious and not as much involved in the scoring, which was his strong suit.

Reichel was eventually moved back to the wing as the Blackhawks tried different line combinations to help the young forward find his scoring. He was given the chance at times to play alongside Bedard, but these opportunities were short lived and not given a more extended look. This led to Reichel falling into the bottom-six where his strong games were few and far between.

With the lack of results piling on, Reichel would begin spending games in the press-box as a healthy scratch in order to ignite the flame that he showed last season. This ultimately led to Reichel being sent back to Rockford for 10 games to build his confidence back up, which saw him tally 8 points in 10 games.

Once Reichel was re-called to the Blackhawks for the end of the season, he looked closer to his old self. He looked more involved in plays and began showing strong forechecking and playmaking once again. While the results were not perfect, and at times inconsistent, the end of Reichel's season was a step in the right direction. He finished the season with 16 points in 65 games played.

What's next for Reichel?

After a disappointing 2023-24 season, Reichel will not be entering next season with the same level of expectations. Many will be looking at him to prove that he can be a scorer in the NHL once again and to find consistency in his game. Fans and the team alike will want to see him carry over his play from the end of the season and build off of it.

Reichel is entering this summer as a restricted free agent, with his rookie contract coming to an end. It is likely that he will receive a bridge deal from the Blackhawks for possibly two or three seasons at a lower salary. Signing this deal will be low risk for the Blackhawks, as it gives Reichel a chance to prove himself at the NHL level, and if he does not then it will not be hurting them salary-wise.

With General Manager Kyle Davidson saying that the standard will be higher for next season, the belief is that more scoring talent will be brought in over the summer. More scoring options should help Reichel find that consistency and take a step forward. When he's on his game, he's fast and can make creative plays with the puck, but that was lost this season as his confidence fell too.

Reichel is currently playing with the IceHogs for the playoffs and has looked strong, making those creative passes and playing with confidence. Having this play carry over into next season will be crucial for his development. Sometimes it takes young forwards sometime before becoming successful in the NHL, and patience from the fan base will be running thin if that next step does not happen soon.

Lukas Reichel's 2023-24 season grade is a D.

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