BLOG: Richardson Seeing More Maturity in Reichel's Play

Three games into his second stint with the Blackhawks this season, Lukas Reichel is starting to show the maturity within his game after coming back up from the Rockford IceHogs.
Head coach Luke Richardson noticed some of these changes within the German forward after he took accountability for causing a turnover to force him into a defensive position. After taking some notes from the coaching staff, Reichel learned from his mistakes and produced his second goal of his career.
"[We told him that he's] too good of a player, take that puck, skate it, create some ice and make a stronger play," Richardson said. "He scored not long after by making a stronger play because [Andreas] Athanasiou and [Philipp] Kurashev killed a play in the D-zone, which we're getting better at, and he just had the instinct and knows when to go and created that chance."

Richardson noted that the play that caused the turnover was a 'fancy' move that doesn't always work with the high speed of an NHL game. With a smart player like Reichel, the head coach knew he could learn from his mistake.
After being sent back down to Rockford to continue his development
, Reichel viewed it as an opportunity to work on his skills during high-tense situations and build trust among the coaches.
"I think it's just the experience [I had in] Rockford," Reichel said. "When it's like, four or five, nothing and it's the last five minutes of the third period, you don't try to turnover [the puck]. Just make a smart play out of the pocket and go for change and just [make a] smart play and keep it simple."

As the team prepares for their three-game road trip this week, they look towards going against more physical teams like the Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The 6-foot, 170 pound forward bulked up over the summer in preparation to try and make a full stint in the NHL. However, during his time with the IceHogs, he felt that he built more confidence to take on some hard hits from some bigger players and felt more comfortable to fight for the puck.
"I've worked on that too, in Rockford for a little bit," Reichel said. "I'm not afraid to go into a battle [for the puck], go in front of the net to tip pucks or hit some guy. But I think I'm still young so I can prove that a little bit more too."
After absorbing a big hit from Ottawa's Brady Tkachuk in the third period and maintaining puck possession, Richardson is confident in the young forward to be aware of who is on the ice. As they prepare to face the heavy hitters of the Panthers and Lightning over the weekend, the first-year coach knows he can trust that Reichel will play consciously with the puck and showcase the maturity in his game.
"So, when he's in Tampa and [Pat] Maroon is on the ice, he knows he's a big guy, [he knows] he could hurt him if he's not paying attention and he catches them the wrong way," Richardson said. "He's got to be aware of not just where the puck is, but who's on the ice, and what type of players they are and it's a more physical league."