Bedard’s Early Goal Sparks Blackhawks to 5-1 Win Over Red Wings
DETROIT — Connor Bedard was the last Chicago Blackhawks player off the ice in warmups, giving the few Hawks fans in attendance some high-fives. When the puck dropped for the opening faceoff, Bedard was ready. It took him only 59 seconds to score his ninth goal of the season—a snipe off a great setup by Artyom Levshunov—as the Hawks went on to defeat the Detroit Red Wings 5-1 on Sunday at Little Caesars Arena.
Bedard added two assists as the Hawks (8-5-3), despite being outshot 46-20, used a three-goal third period to turn a nail-biter into a blowout. They finished their six-game trip 3-2-1 and will return to the United Center on Wednesday versus the New Jersey Devils on a three-game winning streak.
Bedard is heating up with 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) in his last eight games. Already the youngest Hawk to reach 150 career points, he’s steadily climbing the franchise list for most points before turning 21. Now at 153 points, Bedard ranks fourth on the under-21 list, with Denis Savard (160) and Patrick Kane (161) within reach. The team record belongs to Eddie Olczyk, who amassed 180 points before his 21st birthday.
“It will be a few games before Bedard passes Kane, but he’ll take Sunday’s win against the former Hawks great for now,” said Coach Jeff Blashill. It was Kane’s first loss to his former team since the Hawks traded him in February 2023.
“Good road win at the end of the trip,” Blashill added. “You win special teams battles, you win a lot of games. Early in the year, when we lost some games I thought we could have won, we weren’t winning the special teams battle. Now we are.”
The Hawks excelled on special teams, going 3-for-3 on the power play while killing off all five penalties. Teuvo Teräväinen, Tyler Bertuzzi, and Bedard each scored seconds into a power play.
“Confidence is a huge factor in life and especially on special teams,” Blashill said. “When Connor zips the one-hand, that makes the rest of the power play more dangerous.”
To say Bedard is hot right now is an understatement. He took the NHL scoring lead with 25 points, though the Colorado Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon (24) played later Sunday. By reaching 25 points in his 16th game, Bedard matched Kane (2015-16) as the fastest Hawks player in the last 35 years to hit that milestone.
Bedard isn’t the only Hawk on fire. Bertuzzi has six goals in his last three games. “I’ve loved Bert from the moment I started coaching him in Grand Rapids,” Blashill said. “He came in during our playoffs and I thought he was a winning hockey player then, and I think he’s a winning hockey player now.”
Arvid Söderblom started in net for the Hawks and finished with a career-high 45 saves. He made several key stops, including a save on his brother, left wing Elmer Söderblom, in the first period and an impressive toe-tap save in the second.
“I’d been off for a few days and hadn’t played in a while, so the first few minutes I felt a little off,” Söderblom said. “But once I felt some shots, I got into it pretty good right away.” It was the first time Arvid and Elmer faced each other in the NHL.
Despite stopping his brother’s shot, Arvid stayed humble. “You should never be chirping as a goalie; that can bite you in the butt pretty quick,” he said. “I might give it to him afterward.”
Oliver Moore scored his first NHL goal with 15.6 seconds left in the game. The winger has made an impact since being called up from Rockford before last Monday’s game in Seattle.
“It was really good to get the first one out of the way,” Moore said. “It feels like a weight off the shoulders a little bit in that category. It’s all about the guys in here making it easy for me to come in. If we keep playing winning hockey, hopefully it’s the first of many.”
Frank Nazar was a last-minute scratch after suffering an undisclosed injury Friday while being crosschecked by Calgary Flames’ Joel Farabee. Blashill had said beforehand that Nazar would be a game-time decision, so a lengthy absence does not appear to be a concern. The Detroit native has 11 points (five goals, six assists) and a plus-3 rating in 15 games this season.
The two weeks of travel are now over. It’s time for the Hawks to go home.
“It’s been a long road trip and it’s going to be good to get back home and spend some time with the family,” Söderblom said. “Looking forward to it.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/09/chicago-blackhawks-connor-bedard-detroit-red-wings/
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