Connor Bedard’s return to Blackhawks suddenly seems imminent: ‘I feel really confident’

Connor Bedard’s return to the Blackhawks‘ lineup suddenly appears fairly imminent.

The 21-year-old Hawks captain practiced with the team Sunday in a regular red jersey, shedding the black non-contact jersey he donned last week, and he took some light contact in drills without issue.

Coach Jeff Blashill said Bedard will have a doctor’s appointment sometime this week in which his surgically repaired left shoulder will be examined and his first game date will be determined.

Blashill added he couldn’t completely rule out Bedard for Tuesday against the Penguins. After that, the Hawks host the Jets on Thursday and the Stars on Saturday, then have a six-day break before facing the Canadiens on Oct. 23.

“People here see me every day, on the gym, on the ice, and you test [the shoulder], you see where it’s at,” Bedard said Sunday. “Everyone was confident with the contact aspect of getting in a full skate and that unpredictability of what’s going to happen out there.

“I feel really confident in it, and I think they do, as well, to let me do that. [I] just hope to keep getting that exposure, and obviously [I] want to play as soon as possible.”

The second-most notable part of practice — beyond the color of Bedard’s jersey — was that he skated as the first-line center between Patrick Kane and Roman Kantserov.

That’s likely where he will slot into the Hawks’ lineup when he returns, and the fact he participated in line rushes at all is another sign the Hawks expect that moment to be soon. Blashill said the timing of the practice — with another one scheduled Monday — made it doable.

“Obviously, he’s getting closer. Otherwise, we wouldn’t start making that progress,” Blashill said. “We’ll see how it goes.”

Bedard, being his usual supportive self, said he has seen the Hawks “doing a lot of good things” on the ice even though their 1-5-0 record doesn’t reflect it.

There’s no doubt his return will make a huge difference, though, not only with the injection of his elite offensive skills but also because his presence will allow every other forward — some of whom are over-slotted right now — to move down a rung in the depth chart.

He will be able to take faceoffs right away, too, which wasn’t the case when he returned from his right shoulder injury last winter.

“It’s almost more frustrating near the end of [the recovery] than the start of it,” Bedard said. “[At] the start of it, you’re like, ‘I can’t even move my arm, so there’s nothing I can really do.’

“I feel normal. I feel like myself shooting the puck, [doing] everything. You want to play. I wanted to play Game One. But obviously, you want to be safe, as well. [I’m] working with a lot of great people, coming in every day and grinding, trying to get it back as soon as possible. Once they feel like it’s in a good spot, then I’ll be back out there.”

The Hawks’ power play might need Bedard more than anything. They’re 1-for-14 this season, having barely even threatened.

Blashill said Bedard might slot in the left side, allowing Kane to move back to his natural right side and positioning both of them for one-timers.

It will also be interesting how the Hawks construct their new second line during five-on-five play. It was Anton Frondell centering Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen in practice Sunday, but that’s with one game left in Frank Nazar’s suspension.

When Nazar and Bedard are both in the lineup, either Nazar or Frondell will have to either shift to the wing or move down to the third line.