CHICAGO -- Connor Bedard is trying to keep his confidence up, but the Chicago Blackhawks forward is frustrated by his lack of scoring so far this season.
“It’s been a tough stretch, and you just feel like you don't have it or whatever, and you lose a bit of confidence and it just kind of goes on,” Bedard said Friday. “Obviously, it's been a little bit (of a stretch) for me. So, like I said, just kind of keep going in every game, trying to be the best me and hopefully things got to come.”
The 19-year-old center, who was the No. 1 pick by Chicago in the 2023 NHL Draft, has 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) through 20 games to lead the Blackhawks. They next play Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center (1 p.m. ET; CHSN, NHLN, NBCSP, SN). In his past six games, Bedard has two points (two assists in a 3-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday) and hasn’t scored a goal in 11 games, since a 4-2 loss to the Dallas Stars on Oct. 26.
So what can Bedard do better to get out of his scoring funk?
“I mean, I could name 100 things. But I don't know, man. It's been frustrating, for sure,” he said. “I just don't feel like I'm really doing anything. So just keep chipping away at it, I guess, and hopefully find my game again.”
Consistent scoring was there for Bedard last season, when he led the Blackhawks and all NHL rookies with 61 points (22 goals, 39 assists) in 68 games. He won the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL rookie of the year, as voted by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
The Blackhawks have tried various line combinations in hopes of stoking Bedard’s production. The latest top-line features Bedard at left wing with Jason Dickinson at center and Joey Anderson at right wing. The three have been together the past two games, with Bedard getting the primary assists on Dickinson’s two goals against Anaheim.
“I think the best thing we did was put (Bedard) with two players that are really responsible and playing really good hockey. They hold onto pucks and make some plays in the O-zone. Just being patient with that,” Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson said. “It happened (against Anaheim), it came to them because they were doing the right things and last night (a 3-1 win against the Florida Panthers), I think it took all of us to play a good defensive game to win that game. I think that’s a sign of a good team and growth with players, maybe playing out of their comfort zone in a different role to get that job done.”
Bedard said he’s fine with moving to left wing. He can concentrate on making plays and this takes the pressure off him on face-offs, where he’s 47-for-158 (29.8 percent) this season. Dickinson is winning 46.3 percent of his face-offs (138-for-298).
“Yeah, I mean, it's a lot less work, I feel like, than center,” Bedard said. “You're kind of just more about positioning and where to be, and you kind of figure that out playing the position.”
Panthers coach Paul Maurice, who has coached 1,868 games, the second most in NHL history, said it’s “highly normal” for a young center to spend a good amount of time playing on a wing.
“(Florida center) Anton Lundell did it, I don’t know if (center Aleksander) Barkov ever did it. There’s a lot to this game and understanding the different positions is very, very important. There are certain teams that (have) size and (are) heavy and it makes sense to do that,” Maurice said prior to Thursday’s game.”
Bedard isn’t alone. Scoring has been an issue for the Blackhawks (7-12-1), who are averaging 2.35 goals per game this season (30th in NHL) after averaging 2.17 per game last season (32nd in NHL). But Bedard is the new face of the Blackhawks, the expectation is to produce, and he’ll keep working to get the touch again.
“Like I said last night, we didn’t bring him here to be a checker,” Richardson said. “But just the way our team has a lack of scoring, we’re hunkering down on the defensive side until we start getting more power-play opportunities and start maybe potting a few goals and getting a little bit more confidence offensively back.”
