Is The Lukas Reichel Trade Good For The Chicago Blackhawks?

Is The Lukas Reichel Trade Good For The Chicago Blackhawks?

All right. All right. It’s finally here. Um, the news breaks when I’m at work. I still had to hit the gym. I look like [ __ ] I didn’t make my bed. I’m kind of a mess, but I had to sit down and make a video because the Chicago Blackhawks just traded Lucas Riel to the Vancouver Conucks for a fourth round pick in 2027. And um honestly when I first saw the news I wasn’t going to make a video about it but then I went to the comment section and I was looking at you know just honestly the visceral negative reactions from Blackhawks fans on Twitter and Instagram alike um kind of surprised me to be honest with you. They surprised me and so I was like all right I I think I need to sit down and talk about this subject for a few minutes because uh it’s I guess it it is a hotter button issue than I thought. Um, I think some of the people who are who are quite upset about this move or maybe fans uh that have not watched this team for a ton of years and and maybe I’m off on that. Maybe it’s there’s just like a love for Lucas Reichel. Um, I mean, there was clearly not the same kind of love for Philip Kurishv, which was Philip Kurishv was basically in the exact same situation Lucas Reichel was. He was given multiple opportunities with multiple different coaches. never really seized those opportunities and was eventually dealt um I would imagine the love and admiration for Lucas Reichel had more to do with the fact that he looked like a Vogue model than his actual play on the ice which I can completely understand and respect. Um I love players for uh I wouldn’t say I love players for similar reasons like just thinking that they’re hot um for obvious reasons I hope. Um, but I do understand the mentality. I’m not here to hate. I just when I look at Lucas Reichel and his situation with the Chicago Blackhawks, it was not just it wasn’t just last year. And that was the narrative so much around Lucas Reichel last year is oh my gosh, he’s buried on the fourth line. He’s buried on the fourth line with Pat Maroon and and Craig Smith and and can we see him up higher in the lineup? I think there was a reason Lucas Reichel was buried on the fourth line. He has had the opportunities with multiple different coaching staffs and really never found favor with any of them. And so it’s kind of like the bad roommate dilemma. I don’t know if any of you guys have a friend out there that is just constantly whining. It’s like, “Oh, that my my roommate sucks. My roommate sucks.” And then the next year they get a new roommate and it’s like, “Oh my gosh, my roommate is the worst person ever. I hate my roommate. Next year, new roommate. Oh my gosh, my roommate this person sucks again. I I just can’t get any luck.” At what point do you just sit down and and and look around and wonder to yourself, are you the bad roommate? And if I’m being honest with you guys, I do think Lucas Reichel was the bad roommate. There was there was no consistency in his game. He wasn’t intense enough. Lucas Reichel is a skilled finesse player who’s not talented enough or consistent enough to play in a top six and he’s not physical enough or defensively engaged enough to play in your bottom six. So, he often found himself in this weird limbo up and down the lineup not really getting to play with consistent teammates or consistent minutes. Also, to add, Lucas Reichel was drafted by that terrorist Stan Bowman many years ago. And so this was never Kyle Davidson’s guy. I really do find it super difficult to have watched the past year and a half of Blackhawks hockey and think to yourself, “Yeah, you know what? I think Lucas Riel is going to be in the long-term future plans here for the Chicago Blackhawks.” It never felt that way. It’s felt like this was a long time coming and this move was inevitable and and and it finally happened. And I think it’s a great thing for literally every side. I think it’s good for the Blackhawks. They free up space now. That’s one less spot. That’s It’s a guy you don’t feel bad about scratching and having watching games from the press box. It’s an open spot for a Oliver Moore or a Nick Lardis. Ever heard of those guys? One of those fellas that’s absolutely tearing up the AHL right now. It’s an extra roster spot for those guys. And and let’s face it, the Chicago Blackhawks are quickly running out of roster spots. genuinely so many of these prospects are looking like they’re going to be NHL level talents and Lucas Reichel at some point you go from a prospect to a suspect and I think Lucas Reichel turned into a suspect a couple years ago and so I just think it made the most sense for the Chicago Blackhawks to move him. I was expecting them to move him this summer and I was kind of not upset but surprised that he didn’t get moved this summer. Uh, but the deal happens now and a fourth. It’s it’s the Chicago Blackhawks for And this is another thing. This is like the the most annoying thing to me that I saw on social media where people were trying to point the finger at Kyle Davidson and say that this is poor asset management cuz in your head you just know, okay, Lucas Reichel was a first round pick and you just traded him for a fourth round pick. So that’s like automatically bad. We got to back up and take a look at the situation here. So, we get the Chicago Blackhawks get the fourth round pick from 2027 back that they traded to Vancouver in exchange for Ilia Makayv and the rights to Sam Laferdy and a second round pick. The Blackhawks basically just traded Lucas Reichel for Ilia McKay in a in a in a second round pick. Okay, that is not poor asset management. That is that is genius managerial housekeeping is what that is. That’s not that’s not poor asset management. That’s flipping a guy who’s look if Lucas Reichel ever scores like 55 points in the show. I will take everything back. But let’s be honest, you trade you just traded a fringe NHLer for a guy in Ilia Mavev who looks like he could be a staple to this bottom six for years to come and or a massive trade ship in the coming years. I mean, and Vancouver originally retained some of McKay’s salary. So, I I think all in all, it’s great work from Kyle Davidson. You free up a roster spot. You get your fourth round pick back. You obviously have Ilia McKay and that second round pick that you got for taking on Makyav in his contract, which ended up being just a fair contract. Illy McKay came to the Chicago Blackhawks as an overpaid bottom six player and then dropped 20 goals in the show last year. So, I think it’s absolutely phenomenal from Kyle Davidson and the Blackhawks. Lucas Reichel gets a new lease on life, gets a fresh start in Vancouver. It’s what he needed. He was never able to find favor with any of the coaching staffs in Chicago. Maybe he will in Vancouver. Maybe that’s I can I be honest. I don’t know if Lucas Reichel is going to turn around that situation in Vancouver, but I’ll be rooting for him from afar. I’ll be rooting for him from afar. Congratulations to Vancouver Canucks fans. I know you guys were really crossing your fingers uh hoping that Connor Baddard was going to be, you know, the guy that would leave Chicago and and and come to Vancouver, but uh you’ll have to settle with Lucas Reichel. Please take care of him for us. Uh he is loved and appreciated by this fan base. The only side of this deal that I’m not thinking, oh, it’s a massive win for is probably the Vancouver Conucks. I mean, it’s a great gamble. If I was a Vancouver Canuck fan, I’d be happy with it cuz like what’s a fourth round pick? I don’t give a [ __ ] So, like I’d be happy with my team taking a risk on a guy that could potentially maybe be a top six player or like a depth scorer. Um, again, I I I don’t think that Lucas Reichel is going to be a true top six forward in the NHL, but I could be wrong on that. I don’t think I will be, but I could. Um, so I’d be okay with with the swing, but at the end of the day, it’s not like you can’t look at this trade right now and be like, “Oh my gosh, it’s an automatic win for the Vancouver Conucks.” because basically they gave up McCav and a second for him. So, um yeah, I’d say Vancouver is the only side of this deal that you don’t look at right now and say that’s a win. Like it’s it’s it’s a win for the Chicago Blackhawks. It really is. I know some fans love Lucas Reichel. I know he’s got pretty eyes and a nice jawline. I see it. I have eyes. I agree with you. Come on. You know, it’s a win for the Chicago Blackhawks. It’s a win for Lucas Reichel. And it could be a win for the Vancouver Conucks. It could be. But I’m I’m not going to say that just yet because I’ve seen Lucas Reichel play for many years now and um I would not be, you know, jumping for joy celebrating hooting and hollering because my team just picked up Lucas Reichel. I think that’s pretty much all I got to say. Obviously, I I wish Reichkes the best. Um and I’m sure he’ll somehow be a Hawk killer for years to come. But can can Blackhawks fans guys, if you’re watch if you’ve gotten this far in the video, unless you just like acknowledge that your love for Lucas Reichel is a little irrational and and based on things other than his play, and if that’s the case, it’s completely fine. Go crazy. But if if you’re if you’re looking at this trade from a Blackhawks fans perspective and and you’re genuinely getting upset because you think that like Lucas Reichel was not given opportunities here or Lucas Reichel was going to be a big part of this team’s future or Lucas Reichel was going to be a true top six forward in the league for a while. You’re you’re just off base a little bit. Um that’s really all I’ve got to say. Um, I’ve appreciated all the support and some of the negative comments. I’ve been people were feeling some type of way about uh my new win song on this channel and that was cracking me up today. So, I appreciate the comments, negative and positive alike. I am going to be dropping a frontell uh deep dive tape review video at some point this weekend. I’m kind of just mentally dreading that because of how long those videos take to make. But um the reaction to the Canerov one was was too big not to do the frontell video as as you guys you wonderful viewers have requested. So that’ll be coming out at some point. I’m streaming the game on Sunday. So make sure you’re there um on my on my live stream on this channel at six o’clock on Sunday against the Kings. And and that’s pretty much it. Go Blackhawks. I’ll see you guys in the next one. Peace.

In this video I breakdown the Lukas Reichel to the Vancouver Canucks trade!

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