Lukas Reichel is Finished In Vancouver

Lukas Reichel, Vancouver Canucks forward

With the Vancouver Canucks' acquisition of legitimate NHL center in Marco Rossi, Lukas Reichel's days out West have come to an end. Mercifully. After 14 games with Vancouver, in which he recorded just one assist and a minus-5 rating in an average of 13 minutes of ice time, Reichel has been placed on waivers by the Canucks.

General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that F Lukas Reichel has been placed on waivers and designated non-roster waiver status.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) December 13, 2025

Insider David Pagnotta reported that the Canucks were unsuccessful in their attempts to flip the former first-round pick in recent weeks. He has now been designated non-roster waiver status.

Canucks acquired Reichel in trade from Blackhawks, now have waived him

Vancouver acquired Reichel from the Chicago Blackhawks back on Oct. 24 in exchange for a 4th-round pick. He was selected 17th overall by Chicago in the 2017 NHL Draft, but never came close to realizing his potential in the Windy City. In parts of five seasons there, he recorded 22 goals and 58 points in 174 games. He averaged 13:21 TOI.

Reichel has spent several games recently as a healthy scratch, and hasn't played since the end of November.

With the Quinn Hughes trade, three players are coming back from Minnesota, and the Canucks need to clear roster space. The Canucks took a calculated risk in acquiring Reichel, but it obviously hasn't paid off.

Perhaps he can regain his confidence with the Abbotsford Canucks of the AHL, assuming he clears waivers. At that point, maybe another team around the league will decide to take a gamble on his potential upside. Perhaps yet another change of scenery might unlock his potential.