CHICAGO (AP) — When it comes to his scoring slump, Connor Bedard is all about location. As in the areas of the ice where the young forward can deliver for the Chicago Blackhawks.
“I think I got to find good spots for myself, try to get the puck in good areas,” Bedard said. “I think that’s something that’s been tough for me right now, getting the puck in a spot that makes it easy to make a play. So I kind of can’t handcuff myself.”
The 19-year-old Bedard is going through some growing pains at the beginning of his second NHL season. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft has no goals and four assists in his last nine games going into Tuesday night's matchup with Anaheim.
There is nothing more important for Chicago than Bedard's continued development, so Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson is doing what he can to help — while expressing confidence that the dam is going to break very soon.
Richardson moved Bedard from center to left wing for the game against the Ducks, and he also had Jason Dickinson and Joey Anderson on the team's top line. The coach has tried several different combinations in an effort to find some offense for a team that had scored one regulation goal in each of its last five games.
But it all begins with Bedard.
“We want to get more shots to the net, and I think that'll help both Connor and the team," Richardson said. “Dickinson's skating well. He's a real good centerman, so that takes a little bit of pressure off. Let Connor just work on his game and not worry about the face-off circle at this point.”
Bedard was terrific last season, living up to the considerable hype that has followed him around for years. He had 22 goals and a team-high 39 assists in 68 games, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as NHL rookie of the year.
The Blackhawks upgraded their roster over the summer, giving Bedard an increased chance for more production in his second year. But it hasn't worked out that way so far.
Bedard has three goals and 10 assists in 18 games this season; he had 10 goals and seven assists in his first 18 games as a rookie. He has a 5.6 shooting percentage and 29.3 face-off percentage going into the Anaheim game, down from 10.7% and 38.9%, respectively, in his first year.
With Bedard struggling to find his form, Chicago is off to a 6-11-1 start after it finished last in the Central Division with a 23-53-6 record last season. It had lost four of five going into the matchup with the Ducks.
“It’s frustrating, but I can’t go back to the past games or whatever,” Bedard said. “I just kind of got to keep playing and keep trying to get better.”
Richardson said he talked to Bedard on Wednesday about playing simple, like his two new linemates.
“Get him skating forward and not really overthinking it. ... To get him just to realize that sometimes shooting is great and there's a little bit less stickhandling and playmaking,” Richardson said. “But when you do that early I think (it) opens up plays later on.”
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Jay Cohen, The Associated Press
