In a season laden with bad news, the double-whammy that hit the Blackhawks on Saturday might fall short of only the Corey Perry saga as the second-worst moment of 2023-24.
Their franchise cornerstone, rookie Connor Bedard, and their de facto captain, Nick Foligno, were put on injured reserve. Bedard’s injury dwarfs Foligno’s, but even the latter represents another dispiriting blow to a decimated and discouraged roster.
Bedard likely will miss four to six weeks with a fractured jaw he suffered Friday on a crushing hit from Devils defenseman Brendan Smith.
Coach Luke Richardson said he asked Bedard how he felt, and the 18-year-old responded with a glance “like he was OK but he wasn’t OK.”
“It’s horrible,” fellow forward Ryan Donato said. “He’s a kid that loves being around the rink, being around the game. [To] take that away from him is a big blow to him and to us. It’s definitely hard to wrap our heads around.”
Blue Jackets forward Boone Jenner suffered a fractured jaw
Dec. 8 and was ruled out for six weeks, which establishes a rough time-frame estimate. But every case is different, and the Hawks are awaiting further testing to get a more comprehensive sense of Bedard’s case. Hawks defenseman Jarred Tinordi missed nearly eight weeks with a shattered jaw last season, but his injury was more severe.
Bedard was just named an All-Star but now likely will miss those festivities Feb. 1-3 in Toronto — or at least participating on the ice in them — as well as at least a dozen or so games, potentially jeopardizing his once-certain Calder Trophy candidacy.
Foligno, meanwhile, is out with a fractured finger, which he suffered fighting Smith to avenge Bedard later on in the Hawks’ loss at New Jersey.
“Connor was just really upset last night,” forward Jason Dickinson said. “All I talked to him about was just staying positive and being OK with where he’s at. Nick [was] also just extremely frustrated and rattled that it happened. Because I don’t know how many fights he’s been in this year, but of course, it’s this one that he goes and gets hurt.”
The Hawks are now missing eight NHL forwards because of injury: Taylor Hall (out for the season after ACL surgery), Andreas Athanasiou (groin), Joey Anderson (left shoulder), Taylor Raddysh (groin), Tyler Johnson (right foot), Anthony Beauvillier (left wrist), Foligno and Bedard.
The combined salary-cap hit of their injured players now exceeds that of their healthy players, painting a grim picture of just how little talent will be available for Sunday’s matchup against the Flames and beyond. Donato described the team’s mood as “definitely not good.”
Added Dickinson: “It’s comical, at this point, that bodies keep dropping for us and we can’t catch a break. So what else do you do but laugh at it? This is just unbelievable.”
Anderson, Raddysh and injured defenseman Seth Jones skated individually Saturday, so they might be able to return soon.
In meager but better-than-nothing attempts to address their depth problems, the Hawks added two forwards Saturday, acquiring Rem Pitlick from the Penguins for a 2026 seventh-round draft pick and claiming Zach Sanford off waivers from the Coyotes.
Pitlick, 26, has tallied 54 points in 123 career NHL games over the last five seasons with the Predators, Wild and Canadiens, where he played under Richardson. He had 24 points in 32 AHL games this season and brings good speed.
Sanford, 29, has tallied 100 points in 316 career NHL games with a variety of teams (most memorably the Blues). He had bounced between the NHL and AHL this season in Arizona and brings a physical presence at 6-4, 206 pounds. He and Pitlick are on expiring contracts.
