Chicago Blackhawks rookie forward Connor Bedard left Monday's 4-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils after suffering a serious hit on open ice in the first period and failing to return.
The Blackhawks announced that Bedard would miss the remainder of the game before the second period. He played four shifts and 3:05 minutes of ice time that night.
After the game, Chicago coach Luke Richardson didn't have much news about Bedard.
“I just didn’t come back to the game,” Richardson said when asked about Bedard. “We will take everyone home and of course have him checked at home to see if there is anything else. Hopefully we’ll know more tomorrow.”
The injury occurred when Bedard passed the puck through the Devils' defense, separated two defenders at the blue line and ran directly into attacking Devils defenseman Brendan Smith. The force of the hit landed Bedard on the ice and he immediately grabbed his face with his right hand. Bedard got up, skated off the ice and went straight to the Blackhawks locker room.
Bedard wasn't the only player Chicago lost to injury on Friday. Forward Nick Foligno left the game after fighting Smith in the second period. The Blackhawks announced that Foligno would miss the remainder of the game before the third period. Foligno has eight goals and nine assists in 39 games this season.
Chicago forward Boris Katchouk thought the hit on Bedard was dirty.
“Everyone saw it was dirty, so I think it’s dirty,” Katchouk said.
Richardson was less sure.
“I haven’t really seen it much,” Richardson said. “I just saw it quickly on the bench. I don't know if it was dirty. I think Connor reached for a puck and didn't see it because he was behind one of their players. I don't think he outsmarted him. I think he just stopped and Connor ran headfirst into him.
“I don’t think it was intentional to hit or anything. I just think he played hard on the blue line and tried to keep the puck out on the penalty kill.”
Richardson was more than happy with Foligno stepping up in Bedard's defense.
“Players will always make exceptions and be more heated because they are committed and these are their teammates,” Richardson said. “That’s always a good thing. That's a good sign. This team is a well-coordinated team and has done so all year long. He did a great job there. I thought he got the guys up and the guys wiped out all the penalties Nick had tonight. That’s the leader that Nick is.”
The 18-year-old Bedard, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft, was named to the NHL All-Star Game on Thursday. He has 15 goals and 18 assists in 39 games this season.
Bedard is the latest player to be added to the Blackhawks' growing injury list. Already on their injured reserve list were Taylor Hall, Seth Jones, Tyler Johnson, Taylor Raddysh, Anthony Beauvillier, Joey Anderson and Andreas Athanasiou.
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(Photo: Rich Graessle/NHLI via Getty Images)