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“I feel really good,” Bedard said. “Obviously getting to get out
with the guys a little bit today and kind of just keep ramping
up. It feels really good though.”
The 20-year-old center was ruled out for Wednesday night's game
against the Blues, but coach Jeff Blashill left open the
possibility of a return this weekend. The Blackhawks host
Washington on Friday and visit Nashville on Saturday.
“It's great to have him back out there, kind of involved in some
of the team drills,” Blashill said. “Those were kind of the
flow-type drills, but we'll keep progressing. It was great to
see him, great to see the jump that he has.”
Blackhawks forward Frank Nazar also was on the ice before
practice. Nazar was placed on injured reserve last weekend after
he was hit in the face by a puck during a 6-4 loss at Ottawa on
Dec. 20.
“Good for Frankie to be skating,” Blashill said. “He's further
away than Connor, but it's a good step in the right direction
for sure. He started with eating solid food and moved towards
this, so that's good.”
Chicago has won three in a row to improve to 4-6-1 since
Bedard's injury. Asked about the timeline for playing in a game
again, Bedard was noncommittal.
“Hopefully pretty soon I can get back out there,” he said.
With his fast start, Bedard made an argument for a spot on Team
Canada for the Winter Olympics. But he was left off the roster
when it was announced last week.
“There’s disappointment, for sure,” Bedard said. “Everyone in
Canada would want to be on that team, or any country that's
going. But there's so many great players. They got tough
decisions to make, so obviously you respect that.
“It's a great team. You can't really be mad at the roster they
picked, so there's no hard feelings for me.”
Bedard, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft, still could be
added to Canada's roster as an injury replacement.
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