Blackhawks Lukas Reichel Scores First Goal Of The Year Despite Having No Clue That He Had Scored

There's been a lot of talk about that Connor Bedard kid who is having a pretty good season in Chicago, but he's not the only youngster in town...and his name is Lukas Reichel.

It was high time that 21-year-old Reichel got a bit of that spotlight and that happened on Thursday night against the Tampa Bay Lightning when he scored his first goal of the season.

Reichel had no idea at first that he had lit the lamp to end a 13-game goalless streak to open the season.

The Blackhawks had a powerplay with around seven minutes left in the opening period when Philipp Kurashev ripped a wrister from the top of the circle.

It got through a pair of Tampa Bay penalty killers, but not before Reichel got a piece of it.

However, he thought that wiley ol' Corey Perry who was parked in front of the net got a piece of it too.

It sure looked like Perry may have gotten his stick on it, but nope, that was goal numero uno on the year for Mr. Reichel.

"I didn't even know that I scored," Reichel said per NBC Sports Chicago. "I thought Perry had a stick on it, so I didn't even know. But then I was like, 'Yeah, f---king right!'"

Yeah, f---king right, indeed.

It's Tough Sledding Now But Young Players Like Bedard And Reichel Highlight Positive Future For The Blackhawks

It may have taken Reichel a minute to find the goal column, but that doesn't mean he's been slacking. Head coach Luke Richardson has liked what he has seen from the young German.

"He's been playing hard all year," Richardson said. "I think last game before tonight (against the Florida Panthers) was probably the game he had the puck the least and created probably the least in overall chances. But he’s been skating well and his defensive responsibility’s been pretty good."

The Blackhawks ultimately lost to the Lightning 4-2 and dropped to 5-9-0 on the season.

This was to be expected but, the team has some good young players on the books. They're also on pace for another high draft pick this year.

With that in mind, Chicago may be back in playoff contention within the next couple of years.

Follow on X: @Matt_Reigle