Rumors are swirling that the Chicago Blackhawks are in the market to trade former first-round pick Lukas Reichel ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Reichel, who Chicago selected 17th overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, had a letdown of a season in 2024-25. The 23-year-old netted just eight goals and 22 points in 70 games for the Blackhawks.
After scoring a total of 20 goals and 54 points in 169 career games in Chicago, the six-foot forward is rumored to be on his way out.
Per The Fourth Period, Reichel has been open to a change of scenery after his opportunities with the Blackhawks have dwindled dramatically. Chicago general manager Kyle Davidson has been in talks with multiple teams about Reichel, who is entering the final year of his two-year deal.
Reichel's contract carries an annual cap hit of $1.2 million in 2025-26 before he will become a restricted free agent in July 2026.
The Nuremberg, Germany, native has shown promise of a high potential in spurts in the past. When he spent a spell with the AHL's Rockford Ice Hogs in 2022-23, he scored 22 goals and 51 points in 55 games.
It was a step in the right direction in Reichel's transition to the North American game. He previously played professionally with the Berlin Polar Bears in the two years after his draft year and kept up with the competition as an 18-year-old.
In 2019-20, he scored 12 goals and 24 points in 42 games in his age 18 season. He followed that up with 10 goals and 27 points in 38 games as a 19-year-old before signing a deal with Chicago and making the jump to the North American game.
The Blackhawks are looking to make a bit of a shakeup to their roster after finishing the 2024-25 season with the worst record in the Central Division. They have not made the playoffs since sneaking into the 24-team expanded playoffs in the COVID-19 bubble following the postponed 2019-20 season.
