The Blackhawks haven’t played in a game since losing in overtime to the New York Rangers on Friday night, but they were back at practice on Monday ahead of Tuesday night’s game against the Vancouver Canucks.
Atop every report from the day’s happenings was an update on Connor Bedard, who could be back to game action as soon as next week.
Bedard’s been out since fracturing his jaw on Jan. 5 against the New Jersey Devils, and we’re approaching the early portion of that recovery timeline of 6-8 weeks. Chicago is at home next Wednesday against the Philadelphia Flyers and next Friday against the Winnipeg Jets, with either of those games among the possible returns for No. 98.
Here’s the full audio and video of Richardson’s update on Bedard:
Richardson also discussed Bedard’s struggles with that whole “waiting for an injury to heal” thing:
Along with Bedard’s continued wearing of a non-contact jersey at practice, Andreas Athanasiou has been spotted on the ice at a few recent practices. Athanasiou hasn’t played since Nov. 9.
And here’s an early look at what the Blackhawks lineup could be for Tuesday’s game against the Canucks: