Chicago Blackhawks Center Connor Bedard has Fractured Jaw

The news has been broken today as Chicago Blackhawks star center Connor Bedard has a fractured jaw that resulted in the hit by New Jersey Devils player Brendan Smith. The hit, which was deemed legal on the ice by the referee, would also later have an effect on another important piece of the Hawks. Veteran forward Nick Foligno would engage Smith in a fight presumably in relation to said hit on Bedard.

The result of this fight (which went on for a long time) would be that (presumptive) Foligno would suffer a fractured finger. He would not return and now has been placed on IR (7 days minimum) by the team. That's 2 important players that are now out for the foreseeable future from one hit by Brendan Smith.

Per Charlie Roumeliotis of NBC Sports here is what head coach Luke Richardson had to say on Bedard;

Luke Richardson said he broke his jaw as a player and he was out about five and a half weeks, although he admitted his was more severe.

He took a slap shot to the mouth and had two plates and 15 screws in. He had to wear a cage for a bit after. #Blackhawks
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) January 6, 2024

Luke Richardson said there’s no timeline for Connor Bedard (fractured jaw) at this time. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/QCpheAF2Ej
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) January 6, 2024

One thing seems certain: The cage that Bedard wore in the World Juniors is likely to return whenever Connor hits the ice again. The season as a whole has been a hard watch for most fans. Now, with Connor Bedard out for some time it seems that most games may just become unwatchable.

Will this team reach 50 points? Will they surpass the San Jose Sharks as the leagues worse team? In the meantime it may just be important to let these players get healthy. Even with Seth Jones and Andreas Athanasiou set to return, the play on the ice is unlikely to improve in the win / loss category.

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