Here Comes Lukas Reichel To The Rescue
Some Blackhawks fans have been begging for this news for a few weeks. Now, it appears to be coming.
NBCSN Chicago is reporting on Wednesday morning that the Blackhawks are recalling forward Lukas Reichel to the taxi squad. Which puts him closer to getting into the NHL lineup.
Reichel leads the Rockford IceHogs in goals (11 — including three game-winners) and points (20) and is second on the team with nine assists. He also leads the team with six multi-point games. He was named the AHL Player of the Week for a six-point effort last week.
He is lightning fast, greasy in the corners, great vision, great stick, nice shot, a playmaker, and should play between Kurashev and Entwhistle to start, eventually I see him between Kane and DeBrincat. Now, the question is who sits? Borgstrom??
Yes! I’m really looking forward to his debut. I wonder if they play him at wing or center? With Strome playing better, especially at the dot, it seems to make more sense to play him at wing.
Can’t wait to see what the kid can do!
@Tommy. Agree on sitting Borgstrom, I was thinking he could use a night off…
Interesting thought to play Reichel with Kurashev and Entwistle. That could be a line that could do some damage in transition.
I am curious to see how the coaching staff sees him fitting in. I could see him fitting in with a lot of different skill sets. He strikes me as the kind of guy who could play well with finishers (DeBrincat or Kubalik) or fit in well with high IQ guys (Kane or Strome) or play well with faster forecheckers (Entwistle/Hagel/kurashev)…
Regardless of where he plays, I expect he will walk on water… (A little hockey/Messiah pun there…)
This is beyond stupid. 1) wasting a year of his ELC on this lost season (if he actually plays more than 9 games) 2) taxi squad? The kid needs to be on the ice, preferably at Rockford, not wasting time on the freaking taxi squad. The Hawks are overtaking the Bears as the worst ran organization in the city.
Connelly sits and Borgstrom to 4th line. Reichel with Entwistle and Kurashev. Unrelated news,Bo Byram leaves the Avalanche for personal reasons directly before last night’s game. Much more to follow there.
Got wonder if a trade is coming, with Hagel coming back soon too.
Well, how can the organ-I-zatio mess this up? Taxi Squad. That’s #1. If he is not on the active roster then it’s a waste of his time. What? He’ll sit and watch the team? YAY? #2. Where does he slot in? LW? Where Rockford had him all year? Center? Where he played in Germany…and very well. #3. If he makes the active roster, what line? If he’s at LW…he would slot in beautifully on the 2nd line with Toews and Kane. If he plays Center than, like Tim W. he would slot in very well with Entwistle and Kurashev.
The question was asked, who sits? Well…1st line is DeBricat-Strome-Dach. 2nd line Kubalik-Toews-Kane. 3rd line Kubalik-Reichel-Kurashev. 4th line Slavin-Lafferty-Entwistle.
Who’s not there? Borgstrom, Connolly, Khaira,
What about the Defense? S. Jones and McCable are in Covid protocols. Mitchel, Galvas, and Beaudin are up with the team. Gustafsson is back…who cares? Let’s put out C. Murphy, C. de Haan, C. Jones, I. Mitchell, J. Galvas, and N. Beaudin…and let’s give Beaudin some ACTUAL double figure TOI.
This would be an ideal time to see what’s “in the cupboard”. All three kids have offensive ability and are pretty good on defense. C’mon Coach King. Think outside of the box on this one.
Quick Correction: I should have proofread more closely. 2nd line: Hagel-Toews-Kane.
My prediction is that Reichel will not stay on the taxi squad – there is no sense to that
So assuming he’s moved to the active roster before the Hawks play next (Thursday or Saturday) I think you put him in Borgstrom’s place with Strome and Kane and leave Toews’ line and Dach’s line alone
Sit Connolly and go with Borgstrom centreing Carp and Khaira
If Hagel is back then Hagel goes with 88 and 17, Reichel takes Entwistle’s spot on 3rd line and Entwistle takes either Carp or Khaira out of the line up
So with Hagel back
38 17 88
8 19 12
Reichel 77 23
16 (or 22) 13 58 – slight preference for 16 over 22
I wonder where the real impetus for calling him up comes from? Is it our (interim) GM and coach thinking he is ready and can add some scoring or is it ownership wanting to sell tickets? In past when Stan had guys in the lineup who hadn’t earned it (Boqvist, Nylander) or arguably should have been left to develop (Dach) it was clearly about trying to make himself look good. In this case however, neither King nor KD are in that position. Who knows.
With our future being at least 3+ years out there I hope they don’t burn a year on the ELC (although by that time 19 and 88 will be off the books so it probably wouldn’t be a big deal if he stayed).
Actually taking their time with Reichel, King said he’d play a few games, starting tomorrow night then finish the year in Rfd.
Whatever is best for him.
In practice Reichel was on the wing with Strome and Kane.
not unlikely strome won’t be a hawk next year or toews the year after. and no guarantee dach stays at center if his face off performance doesn’t improve greatly. i would like to see if reichel can hack it in the middle. i think that is the biggest need now. i would put him with hagel and entwhistle ….. two guys who will work hard for him.
Guess Reichel was in middle and Strome and Kane wingers in practice.
3 of the next 4 games are home. Yes, I think it’s for ticket sales, the cameramen can’t even get decent crowd shots anymore due to all the empty seats. Again, why now??? So, who’s got Reichel’s back now seeing Gabriel’s still in Rockford?? Why did they get Gabriel then?? Who the heck is making these decisions??? They are gaining big time steam as replacing the Bears as the most inept team in Chicago.
Hawks29: that would be a cool line.
As well, you can never have enough guys who can play centre. Jonny is giving it his best, but he has clearly lost something. Dach may or may not work out there (and I think a move to wing might be a good idea). Johnson, meh, forget about him.
So for a position that was projected to be a strength coming into the year it hasn’t worked out that way. Interestingly, the better Strome plays the more his leverage increases. By year end, he may actually go from being a guy everyone (me included) would have happily traded for a third round pick to a guy we might need to keep. Up to him though to keep raising his game though.
jordyhawk
strome is playing much better, but is he playing for his next contract? would you trust him to maintain this level of effort once the ink is dry on the next contract?
and the bears ….. can you believe this level of stupid in two organizations in the same city? i am a big usa men’s soccer team fan. their coach is a veteran of six years as a head coach in the mls ….. a sub standard professional league at best. another team i am a fan of who can’t get the head coach position figured out.
maybe it is my level of stupid that is the problem. should find something better to do with my spare time.
Yes Strome has won a few fos lately but offense is still pretty much non event. He will never be a backchecking 2 way forward, so his contribution there is minimal. Until his faceoffs translate to pucks in the net, how much are they worth at contract time and long term, without improving his game in the other 2 zones.
Miro, I for that except I like the 35th waaaay more then the 50th unless we get lucky and get a top 10 quality player at 17 like we did with Reichel. Our history since 2008 with gems from 2n round have basically entirely come from the 1st half of 2nd rounds. So I go with what got us here jimmy.
We trade every trade line player we can have a good off and be Eciting like tor and have no D per say and still get good pick. Not sure if it feels like it’s a waste yr for the draft without the 5th pick so in that regards say f it. And next draft we’re on our way up so no more top 5/10 picks. Maybe we get lucky and rewarded with one more top 5/10 pick next draft and then we’re coming.
I am for that during the mean time let’s get one more top draft player. Then just add trade ufa for elites needed which means ufa. Trying to get as many as we can young wave elites is why I go for the top 5 picks while we suck/record wise.
@29: re Strome, I honestly don’t know. I certainly wouldn’t want to make a big commitment to him in years or dollars, but if he turns it around and we’re thin down the middle they might re-up him (we do have to field a team).
If you believe we need a total teardown (like I do) then the best scenario would be moving him while he is on the upswing ideally packaged with say MAF or CDH and potentially getting us back into the first round of this year’s draft). JMHO.
Just don’t rush him please
On a line with Kane and strome
Gustafsson off covid list
Shouldn’t they ease him in and have him play with Hagel/Entwhistle like Hawk29 stated?
Playing with Strome/Kane and they could be a defensively challenged line that can’t get out
of the D zone.
Maybe Dach can go down to the Rock now and regain some confidence, put up some numbers
like Reichel has.
At least King said it’s more about getting a taste rather than it being he’s up for good. From where
I watch the Hawks don’t seem to handle their assets very well. Mitchell appears to be on the outs
only getting 10 minutes, while Galvas has become the next Duncan Keith after 1 game
Strome Reichel Kane
Cat Toews Kubalik
Borgstrom Dach Kurashev
Khaira Carpenter Entwistle
Connolly
Lines today
de Hann Murphy
Stillman Galvas
Caleb Jones Gus
Beaudin Mitchell
Byram likely dealing with concussion issues according to his father, reported by The Athletic.
I’d rather see Borg centring 4th line than taking Entwistle’s spot who is playing well as is that line but we’ll see
Reichel just coming back from A Concussion a few weeks ago is 19 and is a fragile 170 pounds players, hopefully he can have a few games and hope he will be able to play a few games before reçu to Ahl.
Wish him the best and to have fun .
If he’s coming to Chicago, then play him. Why leave him sitting on the taxi squad.
I don’t care for the preconceived plan of easing Reichel in and then sending him back to Rockford. They are destroying Mitchell,Kalynuk,and Beaudin with this nonsense. Get him out there on a regular shift and tell him that he is here for the rest of the year. Give him regular minutes and let him be co.fortable with a legit shot to earn a top 9 spot.
Putting him on the Taxi squad allows him to practice with the team without the Hawks having to formally add him to the roster. They have until 5:00PM of game day to activate him, so this saves the team the need to deal with any cap issues they may have promoting him early.
https://www.nhl.com/news/nhl-nhlpa-to-allow-taxi-squads/c-329234650
The Hawks should be playing their best players, period. His play in Rockford indicates that he might be one of those players, so let’s find out. They have nine games before the the lose that ELC “push” year so, let his play speak for him. If he plays well, he stays. If he doesn’t, he gets sent back. Why is that such a controversial stance?
Don’t like the idea of having DCat and Kubalik on the same line. Spread out thr snipers.
Connolly is heavier than Borgstrom or Carpenter and also played on Riechel’s line in Rfd and believe they played well together. Would keep Connolly in if it’s necessary to mix up lines during the game if Riechel having difficulties.
DCat Toews Kane
Strome Riechel Kubakik
Entwistle Dach Kurashev
Connolly Khaira Carpenter
For now. When Hagel healthy he has to be in and do not alienate Borgstrom. By TDL that fourth line could all be gone to make room for others.
I hope what they are doing is for Reichel’s development, if it is because of not burning an elc year, then the sooner they can get another coach and Gm the better if that is driving it. Look at Dach, probably can extend him pretty reasonable this year, had he had a slide year and another year towards next contract, might be alot more to extend him. Same with Reichel, extending him in 3 years might be alot better caphit for 2nd contract than it will in 3 years time. I see nothing to gain but alot more to lose by a slide driven reason for saving an elc year for the bottom line.
I think they are giving themselves an out for sending him back with all this ‘give him a few games then send him back’ routine and taking the pressure off of Reichel to perform immediately to an NHL level
However if he shows he belongs I think he’ll stay and everyone knows it – management coaches and player
@Wrap – I agree, don’t move Entwhistle, he’s playing great. I expect and want to see more from Strome 2.0, aka Borgstrom. You can see that the talent is there and it shows up in spurts, but until Henny decides to start playing some consistent hockey, I’d rather see Connelly, who is playing great or Slavin, who I think is going to be a keeper, play Borg’s minutes.
I just want to see how Reichel plays during his audition, and if he earns a spot, keep him up, and if he needs more work, send him down. No harm no foul. F the entry level burning of the contract, we need to see if we have a long-term answer before the TDL or do we need to trade someone like Kubalik to plug that hole in the middle.
I hope people here don’t get the idea that if he scores tonight with Kane-Strome, that he’s going to be a star right off the bat. Have patience with the kid. Give Rocky his ticket sales for the weekend and then ship him right back to Rockford. Even Alex Nylander scored a couple of goals with Kane on his line and you can see how that worked out. Wish nothing but the best for the kid, but he shouldn’t be here yet. How many kids have the Hawks messed up by doing this stuff??
@Hammer – Yes, but Nylander is a P***ssy!!
of course excited to see reichel, but even more excited (hopeful) to see galvas play back to the level of his first shot out of the box. the puck moving d-men we have been told will be all that ….. boqvist, mitchell, beaudin, kalynuk ….. gone or lacking so far. really hope king plays galvas at second pairing minutes and second pp quarterback.
Why would they put Strome on the wing? His last two games has seen his FO% be very strong. These lines are poorly put together. Dach is currently a total mess at center. But, he stays at center and Strome is on the wing? Having Kubalik and DeBrincat on the same line is two LW’s on the same line? The lines have no critical thinking AT ALL!!! The organ-I-zation is showing zero planning. Are they showing these particular defensemen for other teams? If not, then why isn’t Kalynuk up with the team? He was the best of the young defensemen last year. These lines are just absolute garbage. Rockford had Reichel at LW. Germany had him at Center. Now they want to practice him at Center? I actually want Reichel at Center but on the 3rd line. Borgstrom and Dach can be on the wings. Let’s try these lines.
DeBrincat-Strome-Dach
Kubalik-Toews-Kane
Kurashev-Reichel-Connolly
Carpenter-Lafferty-Entwistle
Murphy-Mitchell
de Haan-Galvas
C. Jones-Beaudin
Let’s see the kids, on defense, and let’s see what they can do. This team is NOT going to the playoffs. Yes, I sat Khaira and Borgstrom.
What EXACTLY is this GM doing? The SB Blackhawks are filled with no thought. What is this GM’s plan? Does he have one? Is he going to be replaced? If so, when? If not, let’s see some actual thought.
TAB, WHAT RESCUE WILL REICHEL DO?
1. organization is in shit mode
2. already rushed a bust of a pick to show him off (Dach)
3. Reichel isn’t Kane or Toews that saved the organization in 2007
4. having just 1 player isn’t going to save this team (too many holes)
5. remember that players do crap in the NHL while having great AHL careers
Tab what ever cigar you are smoking, stop!
Tommy Ivan: LMAO!! I don’t think I could top your eloquent assessment of Nylander.
I do appreciate that goose doesn’t understand sarcasm
Goose: Tommy Ivan makes a great point about seeing what you got now before TDL to see if you have to make a decision on plugging a hole at center. I hadn’t thought of that.
to all of the “I wouldn’t move ____” comments on guys like Borgstrom, Entwhistle, etc…
it completely depends on the total deal. Can the Blackhawks bring back an impact player? Do they need to move a prospect to unload a terrible contract? Are they making room for a prospect at the NHL level? Does including the player improve the value coming back (read: does Entwhistle + retained salary in a de Haan trade bring back an A prospect and a pick?)
The reason we have the entire transaction history of Stan Bowman (and now Kyle Davidson) on this site so so deals can be viewed for the complete transaction… and we can now look back with 20/20 hindsight and judge the deal in context (the Danault trade still a disaster).
@ Tab – The Panarin, The Danault, The Tuevo, The Joki, and The Saad trades are so bad, that it took a sexual scandal to get that guy fired! Go figure!
There is something about Entwhistle, Hagel, and Slavin that I like as hockey players. Just like Phillips and Regula in Rockford, there is just have an “it” factor that I didn’t see in previous prospects. Please don’t trade these guys!
I will say that Kurashev and Galvas, and to some degree Mitchell are starting to impress me as well.
We have enough young guys to trade – Kalynuk, Beaudin, Hardman, Reece Johnson, etc…Delia!
strome – reichel – kane
seriously? they are going to leave it to a 19 year old, 176″ kid to be the defensively responsible adult on the line? and the one retrieving the pucks in the corners? and have to face the first or second line of the opponent (even though it is the canadiens) ?
i repeat. unless they know hagel is going to be out for awhile i am waiting until he is back to play reichel and then playing hagel – reichel – entwhistle. that might not make sense to many, but what does about this convoluted roster? let him experience his first game with guys who work their asses off every shift.
Wow , Kalynuk last year was in the eyes off everyone like the next super star now it’s Galvas who played 1 game with is 160 pounds that is impressive and already Kalynuk is on the trade list with Beaudin and Hardman OMB 2 of the favorite players last year.ahahah come on guys be serious here .
They are alll. Kids that need time to develop. Maybe all off them will be bad maybe a few will be good but at the end guys like Forsling need time . Now at 25 Forsling is a good Dman and many team would love to get him because they know he didn’t reach is full potential yet at 25 .
Hagel and Lafferty out of covid protocol
Hagel is with Reichel and Kane
What does $21million buy you? 11 goals and 37 assists, and I wonder how many of those
assists are on goals scored by the Cat.
Good luck in your debut Reichel, at least you got to do it against the Canadians and not
the Aves, Panthers or the Lightning
I hope Hagel and Lafferty are both in tonight – Hagel seems ready let him go
It does seem playing Reichel at centre is a trial balloon to see if they are ok at centre when/if they trade Strome
If Hagel plays I also would like to see Strome centring Dach and Kurashev
4th line
Khaira Lafferty Entwistle
Or
Lafferty Borg Entwistle
Reichel on a top line, needs protection, he’s float between kane and cat and play some with the DOC.
Putting on any of the bottom two lines is a disaster and waste of his first game experience, don’t bury him, let him shine!
It sure seems like trading Strome is all but guaranteed. If you keep him you either qualify him at $3.6m (which makes him untradeable) or he becomes a free agent and you get nothing. Let’s hope he continues with the new, improved look to bring back a decent pick. By the way the same case can be made for Kubalik.
Dach and Strome enter Covid Protocol.