BREAKING: Connor Bedard Demoted in Chicago
Connor Bedard has been good to start his NHL career, but he hasn't quite been a bonafide 1C. It seems the Hawks have made a slight adjustment to help him develop.
Bedard Seemingly Demoted to 2C Behind Reichel
With Taylor Hall now out indefinitely, the Blackhawks have shuffled their lines. In hopes of helping Connor Bedard out in more sheltered minutes, they have given budding young center Lucas Reichel their top-pairing wingers, Taylor Raddysh and Andreas Athanasiou.
Bedard will play with Tyler Johnson and Nick Foligno. While they aren't quite as dynamic as Raddysh, Athanasiou, or Hall, they provide high-end leadership and it should be good for Bedard to play with such experienced players.
This will likely be temporary as they will prioritize Bedard's chemistry with Hall once he returns, but it will be exciting to see how Bedard fares in a more muted role. Knowing him, he should shine!
While they have listed Bedard as 1C on their lines, fans have been quick to notice that he clearly isn't being given the best linemates:
Do you think Bedard is the real deal?
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 23 | 100 ANSWERS BREAKING: Connor Bedard Demoted in Chicago Do you think Bedard will be a top-3 player in the league in his prime? | ||
| Yes | 66 | 66 % |
| No | 34 | 34 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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YESTERDAY
MAY 20, 2026
| ||||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Dylan Coghlan | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Pavel Dorofeyev | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nic Dowd | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Gabriel Landeskog | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Valeri Nichushkin | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Rasmus Andersson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ross Colton | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Eichel | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Tomas Hertl | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ben Hutton | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nathan MacKinnon | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mitch Marner | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Brandon Saad | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Colton Sissons | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Devon Toews | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Ahcan | - | - | - | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | - | - | |
| Brent Burns | - | - | - | |
| Jack Drury | - | - | - | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||