Bedard, the NHL's next generational talent, is still at least a week away from returning from a broken jaw as the Blackhawks host Crosby and the Penguins on Thursday. Crosby, a previous generational talent, is still clicking.
Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard made his celebrated NHL debut against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 10 at PPG Paints Arena.
Connor Bedard: Should be back soon, but not in time for rematch with Sidney Crosby.After a tentative start, the night turned out terrific for Blackhawks and Bedard with a 4-2 win. The 18-year-old Chicago center earned his first NHL point with an assist, and his teammates roared back with four straight goals after Crosby scored in the second period.
There won't be the same electricity at the United Center on Thursday night when the NHL-worst Blackhawks host the sliding Penguins in a rematch.
Bedard remains sidelined with a broken jaw, so he won't meet Crosby, one of his childhood hockey idols — at least not on the ice. But the 2023 top draft pick might be cleared by doctors for contact in practice as early as Monday. Bedard would skate in game again after getting acclimated to impact. See the story below.
Blackhawks on Seven-Game Slide
Chicago will try to snap a seven-game (0-6-1) losing streak and is coming off wretched 4-2 loss to league-leading Vancouver on Tuesday.
The injured-ravaged Blackhawks enter at the bottom of the NHL at 14-36-3 and 31 points. They've scored just 22 goals in their last 15 games and have been shut out four times.
Coach Luke Richardson bluntly said his team didn't play at "an NHL level" against the Canucks. See the video below
Then Richardson tried shake up his players with a battle-drill filled practice on Wednesday. See the link below.
Bedard Numbers
Despite missing 14-plus games since being injured on Jan. 5, Bedard is tied with Minnesota defenseman Brock Faber for the NHL rookie scoring lead with 33 points. Bedard's 15 goals still are tops among first-year players, one more than than the Wild's Marco Rossi.
Both Faber and Rossi have played in 53 games. Bedard's been in 39.
Crosby Still Clicking at 36
Bedard was well below the 102-point pace Crosby set as an 18-year-old in 2005-06 after the Penguins drafted him first overall in the previous June. Crosby, the sure-fire"next generational talent" of his era, was the last NHL rookie to score at better than a point-per-game pace.
Now 36, Crosby has kept producing at that kind of clip in his 19th season. The future Hall-of-Famer has 28 goals to lead Pittsburgh and his 52 points are tied for tops with linemate Jake Guentzel.
Guentzel, however, suffered an upper-body injury in the third period of a 5-2 home loss to Florida on Wednesday.
The Penguins have lost three straight and entered Thursday at 23-20-7, seven points behind the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.