- Connor Bedard will make his season debut Tuesday against the Penguins
- The Blackhawks captain was activated off injured reserve after July shoulder surgery
- Read below for what Bedard said and who he’ll skate with
Connor Bedard is back.
Blackhawks head coach Jeff Blashill said Tuesday that the captain will make his season debut against the Pittsburgh Penguins, as long as he gets final clearance from team doctors. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman passed along the news shortly before Chicago made it official:
Chicago activated Bedard off injured reserve and sent forward Nick Lardis to AHL Rockford in a corresponding move. He missed the first six games of the season after shoulder surgery in July.
Bedard was asked about the recovery and said he put plenty of work into the rehab to get back sooner than expected.
“You never really know how things are gonna go,” Bedard said. “I put a lot of time and effort into the rehab process to try and maybe come back a little earlier than originally expected. At the end of the day, it’s just when they felt comfortable and said it was safe for me to get back out there.”
The 21-year-old was given a timeline of roughly four months, and he beat it. Blashill said Monday Bedard was trending toward a return, and the morning skate cleared the way.
Here’s our own post on the news:
Bedard skated on a line between Roman Kantserov and Patrick Kane in Sunday’s practice. That would put him next to Kane for the first time since the veteran’s homecoming, and the two franchise faces have never played a game together.
Chicago needs the help. The Blackhawks are 1-5-0 and sit near the bottom of the Western Conference. Bedard led the team with 75 points in 69 games last season, then signed a five-year deal worth $15 million per season in July. The team named him captain in September.
Puck drops tonight at the United Center as part of the Frozen Frenzy.
