Blackhawks’ Lukas Reichel shows skill, confidence during 2-game taste of NHL

True to their word, the Blackhawks sent top prospect Lukas Reichel back to the AHL on Sunday.

Interim coach Derek King had described the Hawks’ plan to give Reichel a two-game taste of the NHL, then let him continue his development playing 20-plus minutes every night in Rockford as a “chance to do it right by him.”

As tempting as it must’ve been to keep the 19-year-old center around longer — even just for the matchup Monday against the Kraken, which precedes a three-day break — patience and long-term vision ultimately prevailed.

It’s obvious that the Hawks plan to slide the official start of his three-year entry-level contract to 2022-23. That means they can’t play him in more than nine NHL games this season. He has seven left, which likely will be sprinkled into the March and April portions of the schedule.

But it’s also obvious that he possesses all the necessary skill, intelligence and moxie to succeed in the NHL right now. After another few months of ripening and another offseason of strengthening, he could become one of the Hawks’ best forwards when he steps in full-time next season.

His zero points aside, he demonstrated that lofty ceiling as convincingly as he possibly could this week. King, for one, was certainly impressed.

“I really liked his pace of play,” King said after the Hawks’ victory Thursday. “He can skate, and you could see it. He pushes the ‘D’ back, he pushes everybody back and he frees up a lot of space for other guys. You see him dishing over to [Patrick] Kane, and you look at Kane when he gets the puck, and there’s nobody in his face.’’

And after the win Saturday, King said, “He was doing a lot — still skating, pushing back their ‘D’ and opening up room — but he looked a lot more comfortable [doing so]. And he took that big hit, so you’re always concerned, but he bounced right back up and got back in the play. I was happy for him, and I was happy to see him in these two games.”

Reichel played 15:55 against the -Canadiens and 14:51 against the Ducks. He took seven shots, five of which were on goal, and blocked one. He won five of 14 faceoffs, a common struggle for rookie centers. The Hawks neither scored nor conceded any goals during his ice time.

Analytically, he posted — at even strength — a 40.9% scoring-chance ratio (nine for, 13 against) and 42.6% expected-goals ratio. His numbers were better when on the ice with his assigned linemates, Kane and Brandon Hagel. They had a 53.3% scoring-chance ratio (eight for, seven against) and 52.4% expected-goals ratio during 22:15 together.

Reichel’s impact was more visible beyond the statistics. He particularly excelled with offensive-zone entries, gliding effortlessly through neutral-zone traps or forcing defensemen to concede the blue line without a contest thanks to his explosive skating stride.

Once in the zone, he did a good job of finding open space to send and receive passes. His wrist-shot release looked quick and accurate, too, although he could’ve used it more.

With more experience, he’ll learn he has the skill to hold the puck on his stick longer — he already observed that “sometimes you think you have not so much time, but you have time.”

That comfort level should solidify quickly, too, because he’s such a poised, self-assured person. He said Thursday he “had my confidence the whole game.” Asked later if he was surprised he wasn’t nervous, his answer — “No, that’s just my personality” — was accompanied by a broad smile.

“I don’t want to put the puck in and go for a change; I want to make plays,” he added. “I know I can, and I just want to show [that].”