Ever since David Reinbacher was picked fifth overall at the 2023 NHL Draft, Montreal Canadiens fans have slowly but surely familiarized themselves with what the talented defenceman could bring to the table in an NHL setting.
The introduction to Reinbacher’s potential was very interesting, as data analyst Thibaud Chatel painted a rather encouraging picture of the Austrian prospect’s strengths and weaknesses.
Thanks to Youtuber HarryHood1919, who uploaded some of Reinbacher’s NL footage, we can now dive a little deeper into the subject to get a better idea of what we can expect once the blueliner makes his NHL debut.
David Reinbacher Highlights
We have to keep two things in mind as we watch the highlight videos.
Firstly, as the name implies, they’re videos highlighting the best aspects of Reinbacher’s shifts, though I will give credit to the editor for adding a few plays that do not necessarily seem Reinbacher look perfect.
We also have to consider that the National League (NL) is a lower quality of hockey than what we’re used to seeing in the NHL. On that note, it’s also far from one of the worst leagues in the world, with recent analysis suggesting it lands somewhere between the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) and the Finnish Hockey League (Liiga) in terms of NHL equivalency.
The first video gives us a good idea of Reinbacher’s offensive instincts, which have been questioned at length since draft day.
Reinbacher shows off his solid shot on a few occasions, as well as his ability to perform a quick and efficient first pass, the most important aspect of any transition. It’s worth remembering that chances off the rush are one of the plays that result in the highest expected goals in the NHL.
There’s also a play midway through the video showing a great scoring chance for Kloten, but Reinbacher, who thought the puck had gone into the net, was caught a little flatfooted. His defensive work in the ensuing play left a lot to be desired.
Reinbacher (No.64) made up for the goal against in the third period of the same game, with a smart pinch at 2:26 of the video, resulting in an easy goal for his teammate.
In-Depth Footage
The second video includes almost 12 minutes of Reinbacher’s footage in a single game, giving us a much better idea of his overall style of play.
The first thing that stands out is his grace under fire. The young defenceman shows great poise whenever he’s defending the rush, using his strong defensive positioning to cut off attack players with relative ease.
He makes a few nice breakout passes, once again highlighting his value in transition. Chatel explained that Kloten counts upon Reinbacher to make the majority of their first passes, which should serve him well once he makes his way to the Bell Centre.
I don’t want to ruin the rest of the video for anyone, or accidentally influence anyone’s perception any more than I have already, but suffice to say Montreal Canadiens fans should take the time to watch the video linked below.
Reinbacher Prospect Highlights
Reinbacher scores a powerplay goal at 5:46 thanks to his booming shot.
He adds an assist at 10:25 of the video, participating in a quick exchange with a teammate that quickly led to a high-danger scoring chance.
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