Lukas Reichel is once again struggling. So that means this vicious cycle of benching him before being a healthy scratch will likely continue.
However, interim head coach Anders Sorensen’s reason for benching Reichel halfway through the second period is hypocritical.
Lukas Reichel didn’t play half of the 2nd period and didn’t take a shift in the 3rd
Sorensen: “It was a coach’s decision. I didn’t like his game.”#Blackhawks
— Mario Tirabassi (@Mario_Tirabassi) February 24, 2025
If Sorensen did not like Reichel’s game, then what was he seeing in T.J. Brodie? Brodie skated seven more minutes than Lukas and allowed a Toronto Maple Leafs’ goal when a puck bounced off of his skate.
Alec Martinez was on the ice for two of the Leafs’ five goals and he got 18:56 of ice time. He was also the worst-rated player during the Hawks in third straight defeat.
NHL GameScore Impact Card for Chicago Blackhawks on 2025-02-23: pic.twitter.com/jxIv1yfgn8
— HockeyStatCards (@hockeystatcards) February 24, 2025
One thing is clear, the Hawks rarely are patient with the young forward.
The cycle seems to be Reichel provides some production on the fourth line, get bumped up, struggles, gets benched, and then gets healthy scratched.
It is a vicious cycle that at some point must be broken. Whether it is trading him or just being committed to living with the nights he pouts when things do not go his way, the hypocrocisy has to stop.
Veterans can look awful out there and rarely get benched like Reichel does. It is disappointing to see him not scoring more goals. He hast just five on the season. Reichel is also still just 22.
Sure, the bench can be a valuable teaching tool but blatantly saying you did not like his game while other guys on the ice were just as bad, that is almost scapegoating the kid.
This just goes back to the infinite patience given to the veterans, but the quick hook for the young guys.
The front office claims to be patient with the prospects’ development yet that should be communicated then to the head coach. A head coach who was once the Rockford IceHogs head man.
So, if Sorensen wants to send a message to Reichel, that’s fine, but the message should not be to single out one player for a bad night.
