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How does Lukas Reichel fit in with the Canucks?

Originally posted on Canucksarmy | By Lachlan Irvine | Last updated Oct 25, 2025 10:00 AM ET

The Vancouver Canucks needed a centre immediately. And in a roundabout way, they’ve got their man in Lukas Reichel.

The Canucks were rumoured to be in the mix for Reichel as far back as the beginning of the month, but it finally came to fruition on Friday. With all the injuries the team is facing at centre between Filip Chytil and Teddy Blueger, the Canucks needed someone else to take some faceoffs. And that’s where Reichel comes in, despite playing most of his Blackhawks tenure as a winger.

For a player that’s been on the outs with Hawks management, Reichel’s start has been relatively productive. In the five games he’s played, Reichel has a pair of goals and assists for four points, enough that he’d be tied for third on the Canucks in scoring.

“He is a talented playmaker who can create scoring opportunities with his offensive ability,” GM Patrik Allvin said in the team’s press release. “We like the way he moves on the ice and his overall work ethic and feel our coaching staff can help him become a better and more consistent hockey player.”

Consistency has definitely plagued Reichel in his short career. When he’s locked in, he’s creating rush chances and setting up teammates. But in Chicago, finding that skill set on a regular basis was a big struggle that caused the Blackhawks to lose faith in him for their long-term plans.

Lukas Reichel, acquired by VAN, is a young depth winger. Very speedy with good hands and has a shown flashes of skill as a rush creator but generally has struggled to make an impact in the past two seasons. Reclamation project. #Canucks pic.twitter.com/L0UbM0LUBK

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) October 24, 2025

The good news for Reichel is that same pressure of being a cornerstone high draft pick won’t follow him to the Canucks. He won’t have core expectations placed on him, which will hopefully help ease him into a supporting cast role, as well as his new main job as a centre.

The strongest skill the Canucks get from Reichel is his skating. The Canucks’ lack of speed across the roster has been affecting their ability to counter attack, and Reichel could be a big help in balancing that out.

Lukas Reichel's fastest speed burst of season puts him in 67th percentile in #NHL pic.twitter.com/TQ2hioBnfP

— Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff) October 24, 2025

What the Canucks need from him most is to fill the centre ice gap, but his faceoff skills have been middling. Reichel sports a 40.5 winning percentage in the faceoff dot all-time, but he’s been primarily used as a winger in Chicago. The Canucks don’t have the benefit of time on their hands, and will be thrusting him into the centre spot immediately.

The biggest concern for Adam Foote’s roster construction is that at a listed height of 6’0 and weight of 170 lbs, Reichel is another slightly undersized forward in a lineup that has a lot of those already. The Canucks have had a difficult time asserting themselves against bigger teams in the early going of the season, and Reichel won’t be able to help a whole lot in that department right now.

The most likely spot in the lineup for Reichel will be centring the second line, between Brock Boeser and either Jake DeBrusk or Evander Kane. When one of Blueger or Chytil returns , the Canucks would probably prefer to move him down to the third line with Kiefer Sherwood and Drew O’Connor, with the option to use him as a second-line winger if needed.

This article first appeared on Canucksarmy and was syndicated with permission.

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