Canucks reveal their mindset behind acquiring Lukas Reichel from the Blackhawks
Photo credit: NHL.com
With the trade between the Chicago Blackhawks and Vancouver Canucks completed, general manager Patrik Allvin of the Canucks explained his motivation to acquire the young talent.
The Vancouver Canucks acquired former 1st-round pick of the Chicago Blackhawks, Lukas Reichel, yesterday.
The 17th overall selection was acquired for a 4th-round pick in 2027.
The return for the Blackhawks wasn't that great, but for Patrik Allvin, it was a depth addition that needed to happen to the Canucks forward group.
He has two years of NHL experience and could be of some use in a Canucks lineup that is dealing with Filip Chytil's injury.
"Yeah, definitely something that we had felt here over the last two games," said Allvin. "When we played in Pittsburgh, in Nashville, that we wanted to see if we can find something that could help us with little bit more experience. The familiarity here with Kevin Dean being in Chicago over the last three years, and obviously Lukas, as a younger player that was drafted in the first round. Played center in the American Hockey League. Hasn't played as much center in Chicago here early on in his career, but we definitely see the experience that he has, and the acquisition cost for us was intriguing here to make this move."
Lukas Reichel Could Be A Low-Risk, High-Reward for the Vancouver Canucks
For Reichel, it sounds like an ideal situation, as the Canucks feel like they could give him a new home to grow his skills and maybe become the player he was meant to be in the Blackhawks organization.
In 174 games, he's struggled to acclimate to the game, as he's only been able to put up 58 points in his career. A dismal output for someone who was a former 1st-round pick.
Despite this, Patrik Allvin believes Reichel can grow into something better.
"I was fortunate to see him playing in Berlin his draft year. Appreciated his competitiveness, his skill set and his ability to skate. Over time, you've been waiting to see if this guy would be able to take it to the next level and establish himself as an NHL player. It's been for most of the young players, a little bit of an up and down and until you establish yourselves. But you can see the skill set, you can see the speed in his game.
Now he'll have to show the Canucks he was worth the risk; he'll find himself in an increased role while Filip Chytil is out of the lineup.
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