Bedard steps up his rehab in his return from shoulder injury

CHICAGO (AP) — Connor Bedard joined the Chicago Blackhawks for part of Tuesday's practice, stepping up his rehab in his return from a right shoulder injury.

Bedard got hurt on a draw with 0.8 seconds left in a 3-2 loss at St. Louis on Dec. 12. He ranked among the NHL leaders with 19 goals and 25 assists in 31 games at the time of the injury.

“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.