Canadiens prospect David Reinbacher is spending this season in the NL, which should help him improve his game and give an opportunity to show why he was touted as the best defenseman in the '23 Draft.
On Friday, Montreal Canadian prospect David Reinbacher was injured in the first period of a game as his team EHC Kloten took on HC Fribourg. After attempting a reverse hit, the defenseman went awkwardly into the boards. Reinbacher left the ice, later tried to return but missed the last two periods of the game.
The severity of his injury is unknown. It was Reinbacher's third game this year in the Swiss National League (NL.) The 18-year-old has one goal so far this season.
On September 30th, the Canadiens announced that David Reinbacher, the teams’ fifth overall pick in the 2023 NHL draft, would be returning to HC Kloten.
Before being sent back to the Swiss League, Reinbacher had the chance to play two pre-season games. In my view, he played well for an 18-year-old defenseman. While it would have been nice to see more of Reinbacher in North America, it was to be expected that he would be sent back to Europe.
It was probably the best decision for Reinbacher’s development, as he will get the chance to have quality ice time in HC Kloten while working on his game, without the pressure that comes with playing in Montreal.
Being sent to Europe should not be see as Reinbacher being a failed pick. In fact, Reinbacher is following in the steps of many defensemen selected with a first round pick who are having great NHL careers.
Quality hockey
As he did last year, Reinbacher is playing with HC Kloten in the Swiss National League (NL.) The NL may not be as well known as European counterparts such as the KHL or the Swedish Hockey League, but it is still considered one of the best hockey leagues in Europe. Active NHL players like Roman Josi, Auston Matthews and Dominik Kubalik all played in Switzerland.
The NL is a great place for Reinbacher to develop his game, as it offers high quality hockey against men. Although he will have to account for a smaller rink size when he is ready to play in America, there are not a lot of downsides to letting Reinbacher stay in Switzerland for an extra year.
Additionally, the NL is probably the best place Reinbacher can be to work both on his physical strength and offensive skills. Indeed, NL is known as a talent driven league, where speed and skills dominate the play more than other aspects of the game, such as defensive play. While it is not the most physical league, the team’s schedule offers players a lot of time to train both on and off the ice. Teams only play two to three games per week, which leaves plenty enough time to practice different things on the ice and to workout in the gym.
At six-foot-three, 209-pounds, Reinbacher is already an imposing player, but will have the chance to add more muscle this year. With plenty of ice time in a skills-driven league and a schedule that allows to practice frequently, he will also work on his offensive attributes. This should allow him to surpass his impressive production from last year with Kloten, in which he scored 22 points in 46 games as an 18-year-old, and show fans why he was selected high in the draft.
Key situations and special teams
In Kloten, Reinbacher will have the opportunity to play an important role, something that would have not been possible in Montreal. Even in Laval, he would have had to fight for a top four spot with Logan Mailloux, William Trudeau, Jayden Struble, Mattias Norlinder and Gustav Lindstrom.
Last year, Reinbacher established himself as a regular on Kloten’s blueline, seeing his average ice time rise from six minutes per game to over 20. This year, it is expected that he will continue logging important minutes.
This will give him the chance to play in both the power play and the penalty kill. These are important aspects of the game where the Canadiens will need help in the future. Montreal will especially hope that Reinbacher will become a power play driver.
Last season, Montreal had a powerplay efficiency of 16.1 percent, which ranked them 29th in the NHL. In my opinion, Montreal still needs an effective defenseman, with a good shot and vision. Playing with Kloten should help David Reinbacher become that defenseman.
It will also give him the chance to play in key situations, such as when his team his leading by one goal or trailing by one goal with less than five minutes left in the game. Rookies are usually not placed in situations like these in the NHL, but Reinbacher may in Kloten. When he is ready to play with the Canadiens, he will already be comfortable in these challenging moments. Like Kaiden Guhle, I expect Reinbacher to look like an experienced defenseman as soon as he makes the jump in the NHL because of the experience he will gain in Kloten.
If that’s the case, Montreal will have an extremely good top four when Guhle, Reinbacher and Lane Hutson reach their prime.
Comparables
This begs the question: what kind of player will David Reinbacher be in his prime? It is hard to tell and both the organization and Reinbacher need to do the right things to ensure he achieves his full potential.
While we do not know for sure what Reinbacher’s potential is, we can have an idea by looking at comparables. Some have compared Reinbacher to Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider. Born in Germany, Seider is a six foot-four, right-shot blue-liner, picked sixth overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. His size, the fact that he is right handed and is from a European country justify comparisons with Reinbacher.
Looking at Seider’s career so far, you could even say that Reinbacher showed more at the same age. In his draft year, Seider only scored four points in 29 games in the DEL, the professional German Hockey League. After being drafted, Seider played one season in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffin and one season in the Swedish Hockey League. He put up 20 points in 49 games in the AHL in 2019-20 and 21 points in 41 games in the SHL. That is fewer points than Reinbacher scored in his draft year in the NL.
However, that does not mean Reinbacher is better than Seider. In fact, The Hockey News' reporter Tony Ferrari stated in his final 2023 NHL draft ranking that “much is being made about him being the “Next Moritz Seider," but anytime you go chasing an archetype, you usually fall flat on your face."
Pittsburgh Penguins reporter for the Hockey News, Jacob Punturi, made a completely different comparison. In a draft profile published in mid-June, Jacob compared Reinbacher with Brett Pesce. Like Reinbacher, Pesce is imposing and right-handed. Selected in the third round in 2013 by the Carolina Hurricanes, he is a reliable defenseman with decent offensive production. In the past three years, he has scored at least 25 points, reaching a career-high of 30 points in 2022-23.
In my opinion, Reinbacher will neither be the next Seider nor the next Pesce. I think he is better defensively than Seider and could become a better points producer than Pesce. If that’s the case, he will be a key piece in building a contending Canadiens team.
Patience and hope
To repeat, I have no doubt that Reinbacher will become a good player, and that playing in the NL this year will be very beneficial for his development.
But like with any young players, especially defensemen, fans will have to be patient with Reinbacher. Like Seider, Reinbacher might need two seasons outside the NHL before making the Canadiens roster. Additionally, Reinbacher is not expected, as of now, to become a top offensive defensemen like Rasmus Dahlin, Cale Makar or Miro Heiskanen.
Reinbacher will be his own player, with great qualities and that gives hope for the future of the Canadiens. For now, it is important to give him the chance to show what he can do and not drown him under the pressure to become something he is not.
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