The Chicago Blackhawks have provided an update on the injury sustained by forward Connor Bedard.
Last Friday night against the St. Louis Blues, Chicago Blackhawks superstar Connor Bedard sustained an upper-body injury as the regulation clock was expiring. He quickly left the ice in what looked to be tremendous pain, and then he missed the game one night later against the Detroit Red Wings.
On Monday, the Chicago Blackhawks announced that Bedard was going to be put on injured reserve. This transaction is retroactive to December 12th, making him eligible to come off on December 19th.
Jeff Blashill already confirmed that he wouldn’t be taking this upcoming road trip, meaning the 23rd of December would be his first game truly available. However, another update from Blashill changes that. According to the head coach, Bedard is going to miss at least the next couple of weeks and be re-evaluated after the New Year.
Blashill said that Bedard wants to come back now, but they aren't going to let him risk injuring himself again by returning too soon.
This puts a fork in the road for Bedard, who has been incredible through the first third of the season. In 31 games played, Bedard has 19 goals and 25 assists for 44 points.
This points per game total of 1.42 is tied for fourth (with Macklin Celebrini) among Canadian forwards. He trails only Nathan MacKinnon, Mark Stone, and Connor McDavid in that department. The Olympic rosters will already be decided when Bedard returns, so it will come down to what they thought of him at the time of the injury.
Without him, the Blackhawks are desperate for offense. Chicago’s next set of games will be on the eastern side of Canada as they will take on the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, and Ottawa Senators. With or without Bedard, this is a challenging stretch for Chicago.
They now need everyone else in the lineup to step up as a collective group. No individual can totally replace Connor Bedard, but they can attempt to do so as a committee.
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