Before the Blackhawks resumed practicing Tuesday, rookie forward Frank Nazar was the first player on the ice at Fifth Third Arena, beating even Connor Bedard.
The nine-day break during the 4 Nations Face-Off gave the Hawks a mental and physical reset before the final third of their season, with 55 games down and 27 to go.
For Nazar, however, it marked basically the halfway point of his NHL season, allowing him to reflect on his first 26 appearances. He feels much more comfortable now than he did when he was called up in December.
‘‘[I] came in today really happy to be here, smiling, saying hi to everybody, knowing everybody is nice,’’ Nazar said.
‘‘[This break was] perfect, right down the middle, so I know what I’m getting into. I’m like, ‘This is what it’s going to be like for the next couple of months.’ Hopefully it’ll be a lot better, knowing how my body feels. [I can] treat my body a lot better and have a better routine all around.’’
Nazar, 21, had a modest 10 points (four goals and six assists) in those 26 games, but that number might have been a few ticks higher had his luck around the net been better.
He continues to resemble a possible top-six forward for years to come. Although he hasn’t lit the world on fire yet, he also hasn’t done anything to diminish that optimism.
Nazar is focused on improving his off-ice conditioning and energy management moving forward. Between the AHL and NHL, he already has played in 47 games this season, a much larger workload than he has handled before. He played in only 54 games combined during his two college seasons at Michigan.
‘‘[It’s about] knowing when is the right time to do less,’’ he said. ‘‘You want to work, work, work, but [it’s also about] finding time to recover.’’
With the Hawks approaching a stretch of 10 games in 17 days — starting Saturday at the Blue Jackets and Sunday against the Maple Leafs — Nazar’s fitness will be tested immediately. He occasionally might have to skip morning skates, for example, as many veterans do all the time.
‘‘It’s a learning curve for those guys, and that’s an area for him to understand that it’s not just the games,’’ interim coach Anders Sorensen said. ‘‘It’s [about] how you manage yourself off the ice, how you manage your morning skates — or not — and just taking care [of yourself]. That’s a big part for a young player to be consistent.’’
After the rest of the Hawks joined Nazar on the ice, Sorensen ran them through a skating-heavy practice to get their legs back. He plans to work on more technical and tactical things Wednesday and beyond, using this week to make some adjustments he didn’t have time to make back when he was promoted to interim coach on the fly in early December.
The Hawks have gone 9-15-5 under Sorensen, earning 23 points in 29 games. That’s slightly better than the 18 points they earned in 26 games under former coach Luke Richardson to begin the season. For their final 27 games, 27 points — a point-per-game pace — might represent a reasonably ambitious yet attainable target.
‘‘I’m not looking to next year,’’ Bedard said. ‘‘But if we have a really good stretch here in the next bit and you feel good about yourself and our group going into summer and going into next year, that’s big.’’
Forward Teuvo Teravainen, who received surprisingly little ice time for Finland in the 4 Nations event, was absent from practice but should be back soon.
All the Hawks said they’ve enjoyed watching the tournament, with Bedard calling it ‘‘the highest level of hockey ever played.’’
Defenseman Louis Crevier (concussion) took part in practice in a non-contact jersey and might play Saturday, Sorensen said. Forward Jason Dickinson (ankle) remains two or three weeks away.