On Sunday, Ben Pope in Chicago Sun-Times did his best to predict the Blackhawks’ opening night lineup. I’ll go into more detail about his lines/pairings later, but there were a few things he wrote when trying to put together a lineup that reminded me there will be some roster battles in camp that we may not be paying enough attention to (yes, even in late August).
There is more and more talk about how the Blackhawks defense will line up, with much of it centering around whether Kevin Korchinski will start the season in the NHL or AHL. But there is another roster dispute that keeps coming to mind.
How and where Lukas Reichel fit into the Blackhawks lineup? And… does he even fit in?
Pope has Reichel on the right wing of his third line (with Nick Foligno And Jason Dickinson). In explaining his second line of Taylor Hall—Andreas Athanasiou—Philip KurashevPope admits: “Reichel’s future in the NHL depends on him becoming a top-six forward given his style of play and his stature. But he has shown that he cannot play center.”
In his justification for Reichel with Foligno and Dickinson, Pope adds:
Reichel probably isn’t the answer, but the Hawks need to correct his trajectory, and this kind of stable situation with a respectable amount of ice time could provide a good opportunity to do so.
Joey Andersoncould be reversed Be the right answer – he and Dickinson had a goalscoring chance ratio of 50.1% in 523 minutes together last season – but the new additions could also make him an underdog.
Welcome to an unheralded “sky meets hard ground” spot for the Blackhawks’ coaches at training camp. I think everyone recognizes that Reichel has the tools to be a top-six forward…but he hasn’t done it consistently yet. And now that the Blackhawks have other viable top-six options, he’s going to have to earn it. Ironically, Reichel needs to have a great season, just like Kurashev needed to last year – and Kurashev did just that.
When I made a first attempt to put together the Blackhawks’ offensive lines for the upcoming season on July 2, I actually didn’t have Reichel in any of my four lines. Because the Blackhawks have added players – and Teuvo Teräväinen And Ilya Mikheev — who play fast, score points and are known for their defensive skills. The fact that Teräväinen, Kurashev and Mikheyev are all expected to play on the wing complicates things for Reichel, who has not shown in the NHL that he can hold his own as a center.
The point is: It doesn’t look like there is an easy path to a topnine Striker position for Reichel. And that’s before we think about Frank Nazar He may win the second-string center spot in camp (which is possible).
Reichel had a lot to prove last season – and a lot of opportunities – but it didn’t go nearly as well as he or the organization would have liked. Rockford should no longer be an option for him; he would now have to clear the waivers list to be sent to the AHL. So Reichel’s performance in training camp could be as crucial to whether he stays with the Blackhawks as it is to earning a role in the lineup.
