What is Connor Bedard's Timeline to Return to Blackhawks After Shoulder Injury?

Chicago Blackhawks center Connor Bedard will miss at least one game after appearing to suffer a right shoulder injury Friday night during a last-second faceoff against the St. Louis Blues.

Blackhawks coach Jeff Blashill, who declined to speculate on whether Bedard would be out long-term, called the incident a "freak accident."

"He won't play tomorrow," Blashill said Friday night. "I won't know more info tomorrow... At some point through the weekend I'll know more, so probably have more info come Monday."

Bedard fell to the ice and was in visible pain after taking a cross check from Blues forward Brayden Schenn in the final second of Friday night's 3-2 loss.

The center had assisted on each of the Blackhawks' goals prior to his injury.

The Blackhawks will be without Bedard at least for Saturday night's home game against the Detroit Red Wings, leaving Frank Nazar as a potential first-line center.

The team is then heading on a three-game Canadian road trip, starting Tuesday at the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Bedard was off to the best start of his career through 31 games by racking up 44 points (19 goals, 25 assists) to trail only the Colorado Avalanche's Nathan MacKinnon and Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid for the NHL lead.

Whether the third-year center ultimately misses an extended period of time will have implications not only for the Blackhawks, who sat just one point back of a Western Conference Wild Card spot as of Friday night, but for Team Canada.

Bedard, 20, is a hopeful to make the Canadian roster for the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics in February. Team Canada general manager Doug Armstrong recently said he had been "very impressed" by both Bedard and 19-year-old San Jose Sharks star Macklin Celebrini so far this season.

Olympic teams must finalize their rosters by Dec. 31, by which point both Team Canada and the Blackhawks will have more clarity as to the extent of Bedard's apparent injury.