Blackhawks Daily: Connor Bedard Bringing It At Worlds

On one side of the world, Blackhawks rookie extraordinaire Connor Bedard is scoring a pair of goals during international play. Right here in North America, the Stanley Cup Playoffs series evened up at one apiece Friday night.

It’s nothing new for Bedard, who will likely bring home the Calder Trophy for the league’s best rookie in a month. It’s likely the first of many trophies for Connor Bedard but seeing him doing what he’s doing with a stronger roster reminds that 2023-24 should be an anomaly.

Connor Bedard is making big plays at Worlds but this is some CRISPY passing by Team Canada, specifically Nick Paul! Wow.

The #Blackhawks star no longer has a cage either 👀 pic.twitter.com/AvnGWKFgbo

— Vinnie Parise (@VinnieParise) May 11, 2024

The Stanley Cup Playoffs on Friday saw teams deadlock their respective series.

The Florida Panthers came in looking to steal home-ice advantage back after the two teams split down in Sunrise. The Panthers needed a big effort if they were going to beat the Boston Bruins again. 

Right now, it doesn’t look like Florida can be stopped. They had that little bump in the road in game one of this series but they have mostly handled the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins so far. It’s scary to watch (in a brilliant way)  That dominance continued on Friday night. By the 3:09 mark of the third period, Florida had built up a 4-0 lead on Jeremy Swayman and the Bruins. Boston made it interesting by scoring two quick ones to make it 4-2 but Florida quickly responded with two more of their own. 

That 6-2 final score held up and the Panthers have a 2-1 series lead. It will be interesting to see where it goes from here, especially for the Bruins in goal. Is it time we see Linus Ullmark or will they go back to Jeremy Swayman? 

In game two of Friday’s action, the all-Canada series had a thriller. The Vancouver Canucks we’re looking to take a stunning 2-0 series lead over the Edmonton Oilers after their sweet comeback in game one. 

Down 3-2 late, Connor McDavid found a way to get things evened up for his Oilers. Eventually, the game found overtime where Evan Bouchard scored the game-winner to tie up the series heading back to Edmonton. 

Both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl had one goal and three assists for four points in this game. Sometimes, you need your best players to show up for you and that is what happened for Edmonton here. What a way to end an amazing day of playoff hockey. 

Blackhawks In Case You Missed It

The Chicago Blackhawks have a good player in Colin Blackwell. He may or may not fill a role for a while going forward. 

Kyle Davidson said that landing the second overall pick is a win for his Chicago Blackhawks team. Who are we to argue? 

Reese Johnson carved out a role for himself in 2023-24. Can he do it again for next year and beyond? 

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