Chicago Blackhawks sign forward Lukas Reichel to two-year contract extension

The Blackhawks originally selected Reichel in the first round (No. 17 overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. The Nuremburg, Germany product remained with the DEL’s Berlin Polar Bears for his first post-draft season before arriving in North America in 2021.

Reichel posted 21 goals and 57 points in 56 games with the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs in the 2021–22 season and also played in his first 11 NHL games with the Blackhawks. The following year, he was named an AHL All-Star while also scoring 15 points in 23 NHL games with Chicago.

But this past season, Reichel struggled to produce at a consistent basis with the Blackhawks and was occasionally made a healthy scratch by head coach Luke Richardson. The 6′ left wing finished the season with a -29 rating and found himself back in the AHL for 10 more games, as well as the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Through 99 career NHL games over parts of three seasons with the Blackhawks, Reichel has collected 12 goals and 32 points. He’s added 42 goals and 116 points in 121 career AHL contests with the IceHogs while adding five goals and seven points in 14 playoff games.

Reichel had been set to become a restricted free agent this summer upon the expiry of the three-year, entry-level contract he originally signed with the Blackhawks back in 2021. With Reichel signed, the Blackhawks now have 10 RFAs to sign this offseason: Mackenzie Entwistle, Reese Johnson, Joey Anderson, Taylor Raddysh, Cole Guttman, Michal Teply, Filip Roos, Isaak Phillips, Louis Crevier, and Jaxson Stauber.

The Blackhawks finished the 2023–24 regular season with a 23-53-6 record and 52 points, enough to finish 31st in the National Hockey League (only ahead of the San Jose Sharks). They hold the second-best odds of picking No. 1 overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, pending the results of Tuesday’s draft lottery.