Devils vs Blackhawks: Connor Bedard fractured his jaw in loss to New Jersey

The New Jersey Devils took on the Chicago Blackhawks at home on Friday night. It was a hard-fought game by Chicago but New Jersey prevailed 4-2. 

The Hawks had a 2-1 lead going into the third period but the Devils are a significantly better team that gave them a push. Once Simon Nemec tied it at two, New Jersey took over from there. 

Speaking of Nemec, he has been incredible lately. He was amazing defensively in their game against the Washington Capitals on Wednesday and he followed it up with an offensive burst against Chicago. 

The New Jersey Devils and Chicago Blackhawks each had their All-Star get hurt

There was a bit of bad luck for both teams in this game. Both Connor Bedard and Jack Hughes were hurt by the end of it. This came one day after both of them were named to be All-Stars. 

Bedard’s injury came in the first period. He is now one of many Chicago Blackhawks players that are hurt. We don’t know the extent of his injury but he did not return following the big hit by Brenden Smith early in the game. 

On Saturday, we learned that the Chicago Blackhawks placed Connor Bedard on Injured Reserve with a fractured jaw. This is horrible news for them as he is their only source of regular offense.

As for Jack Hughes, he was very late in the game. He didn’t return either but the game was pretty much sealed for the Devils by that time anyway. Lindy Ruff did not offer an update after the game. 

Neither team wants to see their guy out. Both of these guys have been consequential so far this season. We have to hope that they can bounce back to form with full health soon. 

Jack Hughes will have his older brother Quinn Hughes and the Vancouver Canucks in town on Saturday night. Hopefully, he is healthy enough to play in the game. Luke Hughes should be ready for it too as this is only the second time he’ll be a part of it. 

As for Bedard, they will be hosting the Calgary Flames at the United Center. This loss to the Devils was their fifth in a row so they are going to have to dig deep to climb out of this rut. 

New Jersey and Chicago had a very scrappy game. The Smith hit on Bedard caused so much chaos. The Blackhawks had a season-high 38 PIMs and the Devils had 26. There was a lot of power play time distributed evenly. 

This was the last time the two will play this season. The Devils won both matchups this year. Both teams are headed in opposite directions but they may both be super elite in short order.