Throughout a tricky campaign last season in Chicago, it’s clear one thing was missing from the game of young forward Lukas Reichel – confidence. The Blackhawks tried everything throughout the year to try to get him going, from switching up his linemates to even sending him to Rockford twice (including for the AHL playoffs). It was clear to everyone who watched that he absolutely had the talent to make it in the NHL, he just didn’t seem to believe that he could.
He wasn’t part of the lineup for Team Germany’s first few games at the IIHF World Championship this year, but Reichel has proved in only five games in the tournament that his confidence is back, and it’s what was missing from his game in the first place. The heavily scrutinized 17th-overall pick has tallied three goals and four assists in his five games so far.
Is it the new two-year extension the Blackhawks locked him up with? Has it simply been a change in time zone? Is it the players he’s skating with or against? The cause of Reichel’s current breakout is unclear, but if he keeps playing this well for Germany, that could easily translate into the NHL next season.
If Reichel can gain much-needed confidence from his strong breakout performance overseas, there’s no telling his maximum potential with the Blackhawks. He’s proven already in his young career that he’s an exceptional skater and strong scorer – there’s a reason expectations for the 22-year-old were so high coming into last season. When he’s confident in his own abilities, he’s a flashy player with superstar potential. He showed a great example of that in the season finale last month:
Will the young skater be able to keep things going for the rest of the tournament? He’ll have a chance to make things happen for his squad when they take on Philipp Kurashev and Switzerland in the tournament’s quarterfinal round Thursday at 9:20 a.m. CDT. More importantly for Blackhawks fans – will he be able to translate this new confidence into a breakout season in Chicago? We’ll find out this fall.
