Czech F Kristian Reichel – Prospects with NHL Bloodline’s
Czech F Kristian Reichel is number 15 on our list in a series dedicated to draft-eligible prospects with current or past family ties to the NHL. Kristian is the son of former NHLer Robert Reichel, drafted 70th overall (4th Round) by Calgary back in 1989.
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Matthew Tkachuk, Jakob Chychrun, Alex Nylander, Kieffer Bellows, and Logan Brown are the first names to come to mind for 2016 draft-eligible prospects with current/or former NHL bloodline’s.
Both Keith Tkachuk and Michael Nylander had long, successful careers. Brian Bellows played nearly 1200 games, producing more than 1000 points. Jeff Brown also had a solid career posting 585 points in 747 points from the back-end. Jeff Chychrun was a 1984 draft pick, a veteran of 262 games playing until 1993-94, finishing his career with AHL Cape Breton.
We are featuring 15 draft-eligible prospects with NHL bloodline’s/family ties. The 2016 NHL Entry Draft will be held on June 24-25 in Buffalo, New York at the First Niagara Center.
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NHL Bloodline’s: Czech F Kristian Reichel
Czech F Kristian Reichel
Father: Robert Reichel
There are few players in NHL history that have as much International experience as Robert Reichel. He appeared in six World Championships, and two Olympic games. The only season Reichel did not represent Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic between 1987 and 2004 was in 1998-99.
Union and Blue
Robert played for the Calgary Flames, New York Islanders, Phoenix Coyotes, and Toronto Maple Leafs throughout his 12-year NHL career. He did play overseas in Germany for the entire 1995-96 season, then two years for HC Litvinov of the Czech League (1999-00, 2000-01) before returning to play for Toronto the following three years. Robert Reichel continued to play professional hockey in the Czech Republic for six more years – until 2009-10.
Reichel appeared in 830 regular season game, scoring 252 goals, 378 assists (630 points). He also produced 31 points in 70 playoff contests.
He began his coaching career with HC Litvinov in 2010-11, but resigned to coach their U16 team in 2011-12 – he also coached the Czech U16 National team. He took over as Assistant Coach for the Litvinov U18 squad in 2013-14 – coaching the U16 National team again.
Robert was once again promoted in 2014-15 to Litvinov’s U20 team. He also saw a promotion on the National stage, taking over the Czech U17 team. He shifted his sole focus to the National Program in 2015-16, coaching both the U18 and U19 programs.
Robert Facts:
– World Championships: three-time gold medal winner, four-time bronze medal winner
– Robert Reichel scored the lone shootout goal in Czech Republic’s victory over Canada at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics – eventually beating Russia in the final.
– He left Phoenix after the 1998-99 season to play for Czech HC Litvinov the next two seasons. His rights were eventually traded along with Travis Green, and Craig Mills in exchange for Danny Markov. He spent three more seasons playing in the NHL for the Toronto Maple Leafs, posting 123 points in 228 games over that span.
Czech F Kristian Reichel – 92nd Ranked European Skater (NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings)
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Playing for the same program as his father (HC Litvinov), Kristian made a four-game appearance with the U16 team back in 2011-12 when he was 14-years-old. He spent the entire 2012-13 season with HC Litvinov U16, then split 2013-14 between their U16 and U18 teams. He also represented the Czech National U16 squad, posting eight points in 13 games.
He spent most of last season with HC Litvinov’s U18 team, but saw a short-stint with the U20 team. Kristian wore the “A” for the Czech National U17 team, producing 19 points in 27 International games.
Kristian looks smaller than his 6’0 frame because he’s only 154lbs. Once he fills out, and puts on some extra weight, this crafty center will garner more attention from scouts. This is a prospect to watch over the next couple of years to see how he plays on the International stage at future World Juniors.
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2016 Draft-Eligible Prospects With NHL Bloodline’s:
*NHL family ties in parentheses
| Ty Ronning (Cliff) | Riley Stillman (Cory) | Graham McPhee (George) | Kenny Johnson (Jack) | Casey Fitzgerald (Tom) | Mathieu Sevigny (Pierre) | Luke McInnis (Marty) | Hudson Elynuik (Pat) | Ben Hawerchuk (Dale) | Hayden Verbeek (Pat) | Garrett Pilon (Rich) | Kelly and Kevin Klima (Petr) | David Quenneville (John, Joel) | Fredrik Forsberg (Filip) | Kristian Reichel (Robert)
Next: Top 100 Forwards Under 25 Years Old
Kristian Reichel is representing four teams in 2015-16. He began the year with Litvinov’s U16 team – but six points in two games prompted a call-up. The majority of time has been spent with HC Litvinov’s U20 team, producing 17 goals, seven assists (24 points) in 28 games. He also saw 15 games with the Czech Mens team (Extraliga) his father played for, tallying three goals, one assist (four points) in 15 games.
He also suited up for the Czech U18 squad, posting 10 points in 16 games. He had three points in four games at the Ivan Hlinka tournament.