Instant Analysis: Bedard Dazzles But Blackhawks Fall 4-3

Just after 6:30 am Connor Bedard was having an early morning workout. In the afternoon, he was scoring jaw dropping goals.

Bedard scored his eighth and ninth goals of the season in exciting fashion but it wasn’t enough as the Blackhawks fell to the Florida Panthers 4-3 Sunday afternoon.

The first was a strip-steal-score goal where the Blackhawks desperately needed a shot in the arm after chasing the Panthers for most of the period. The second was a far-side shot that stunned Sergei Bobrovsky and gave the Hawks another tie.

pic.twitter.com/EFvFzehSgm

— Blackhawks Talk (@NBCSBlackhawks) November 12, 2023

It was the regular occurrence for the afternoon-Florida gets a goal and then the Blackhawks–twice Bedard, would respond. But the fourth goal proved too many as Chicago couldn’t find one final marker to push it to overtime. They pushed a ton of pressure in the final seconds, but couldn’t snag a point.

Blackhawks Push Back Beyond the Scoreboard

Nick Foligno was incensed after Bedard was hammered along the boards by Dimitry Kulikov. Foligno was issued a penalty on the play but the message was clear: don’t mess with the kid.

Connor Bedard gets crushed by Dmitry Kulikov, and Nick Foligno was having absolutely none of it. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/Uxc3o4Tzh5

— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) November 12, 2023

Matthew Tkachuk then skated by as Bedard recalibrated following the hit and took a few shots as he welcomed Bedard to Sunrise. But Bedard all but shrugged it off, the usual for a kid who is often drawing the most attention on the ice.

Powerplay Fizzles

Even a four-minute double minor couldn’t jolt the power play awake. It’s not as if they didn’t have chances but the Blackhawks couldn’t find their rhythm during the man advantage. Still ranked in the bottom of the league, the Panthers and Blackhawks were 26th and 27th respectively in efficiency.

The difference? Florida buried two of its four chances. The Blackhawks couldn’t squeeze one in their three attempts but had great pressure with Arvid Soderblom watching from the bench late in the third. Tyler Johnson just missed on an open net with the seconds melting away in the game.

That pressure was reassuring–but needed more earlier in the game.

The power play will come along as the season wears on–but it’s still one of the puzzles head coach Luke Richardson and the staff have to put together.

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