While I agree with this, in the heat of the moment, how do you determine if it’s a clean hit or not? Many times you need a second look to make that decision.
- Angotti

Well if he hits him above the shoulder its not clean

You would love it, more assurance of that top 3 draft choice. Can't try to improve the club any faster than what Central Planning has laid out in their 10 season and beyond plan.
- LAHawk

Yea that's why they are playing 2 guys who deserve to be with the big club, Bedard and Korchinski. Settle down Francis.

Don't need anymore assurances other than the product on the ice

https://x.com/BenPopeCST/status/1734288127789826213?t=2FAmVgk5wMJ5f4MxQDnnDw&s=01

Damn i didn't expect that
- BetweenTheDots

He’ll get claimed, maybe San Jose or Columbus. I hope Katchouk gets more playing time elsewhere.

Why does Bedard try to go through three players? Is he a puck hog? No he’s proven he’s a superlative passer and his goals to assists ratio prior to the NHL bear that out. Also in the NHL so far, he has more assists than goals. Is he mindlessly skating around with the puck? No, his head is always on a swivel looking for options. So what would an Einstein deduce? Either he’s suddenly turned into a puck hog, he’s forgotten how to pass or …… for some reason he can’t pass. Let’s look at the third option. Almost every shift, including when the Hawks are on the power play Bedard is not only double teamed, but other opponents cheat towards him. And his teammates seemingly have no clue how to get into open ice. In most cases Bedard has to pass through opposition players to pass to a team mate. Twice on rushes last night Bedard was carrying the puck through the neutral zone. In both cases, as the opposing team converged on him I didn’t see one other Blackhawk in the frame on my TV. Until proven otherwise I see all of Bedard’s problems the direct result of playing with mostly AHL quality teammates. And despite all that he’s been involved in 40% of the team’s scoring. Does Bedard make mistakes, yep a ton of them. Is him trying to skate through the opposition one of them? Nope, that’s on his teammates and ultimately the GM for not having enough talent around him.
- paulr

Feel free to rebut without one in return. I've made my feelings known that right NOW Bedard is a jrs player with a world class shot playing in the NHL. For the most part I'll steer clear of this topic from now on, that Bedard is a jrs player, cuz it is redundant except I'll point out his long shifts causing goals against.

So Bedard's problems are cuz he's surrounded by AHLers? Bedard's brain is so elite that a Kurashev, Beauvillier, Foligno, D!ckinson do not know how to skate to open ice to be a target even though there is vast areas of open ice cuz Bedard is triple teamed, so Bedard has to skate directly into 3 players over and over and over resulting in odd mans the other way and we are into Game 25???? Game 25 and he has no choice but to skate into 3 opponents? ..... We know those guys aren't finishers but so far outa Bedard's league they don't know how to support/be a target for him?

What choice does he have if he can't find the 2 open players or they don't have the brains t skate to open ice? Rim it in, dump and make the Dman turn, check up and wait for the next wave, let SOMEONE else carry it in and use your elite brain to support the puck carrier (watch that it seems to work for Bedard). Anything but skate into 3 opponents, anything.

How many times do we ever see a legit NHLer engaged by 3 players? Do that to Kucherov, Point, Kane or Marchand and they'll skin you alive every single time hitting one of 2 guys that are wide open.

The kid is 18, he truly has exceptional skills including between the ears, has had crazy success all his life but that ain't enough in the Bigs...... I have no doubt he'll figure it out but at Game 25 I'd have hoped he would be further down that road by not skating into 3 opponents game shift after shift, game after game.

And the 2:00 minute shifts? This bothers me the most and my biggest fear is it's a window into the future. There can be no possible way LR, Perry or Foligno did not tell Bedard after the 1st game, hey kid you can't do that in the Bigs. No way I thought then a Mickey Redmond mentions Bedard's long shifts are disrespectful to the game and your mates and that you do that on a Perron team and he's in your face.

Verification of what I thought, knew, from a 50 yr guy. So I know he's been told but he keeps doing it over and over and over. That to me is the biggest concern going forward, kid don't care he's doing it his way.

You made reference in one of your posts to Bedard looking or playing like a junior player - and for the most part I agree with that. He was so dominant offensively in junior he didn't need to check and it was probably not expected of him. So he is just going to have to learn at this level or be taught.

Now I'm releuctant to make this comparison but I can't think of another player - #99 Gretzky. Do you think he ever checked anybody or thought much about defence? Why would he when he knew he and his mates could outscore every team in the league. Often, while on a 1:30 - 2:00 minute shift, he hung around the blueline or center ice looking for the breakout pass, he didn't care what was going on behind his own blueline, that was for defenceman.

The game is different now and Bedard is going to have to play different than current. The coaching staff will eventually mandate it.
- RickJ

Rick, speaking for myself, it doesn't take a scout's eye to see/know what jr players look like and the mistakes they make it only takes having seen enough of that level and that is what Bedard looks like in the NHL right NOW. ....... He's 18, should we be surprised? No, but at Game 25 you'd like to see those mistakes start being eliminated.

And what you posted about Gretzky is exactly why I'd rather watch Forsberg play 100 out of 100 times.

Or you fix it by getting a Tom Wilson on your team.
- Mr Ricochet

I was just thinking, you get Tom Wilson and there is a Considerable consequence to bullying Bedsy.

He’ll get claimed, maybe San Jose or Columbus. I hope Katchouk gets more playing time elsewhere.
- DarthKane

These are times when guys like me, who think Boris is a top 6 guy on this roster, is proven right or wrong. If the league feels the same way about Boris as LR/KD and doesn't claim him or when they do he still gets 12:00 per game with no results I'm wrong.

Seems there's more to it than what our eyes are telling us. We'll soon see.

I was just thinking, you get Tom Wilson and there is a Considerable consequence to bullying Bedsy.
- wiz1901

Indeed.

I'm not a guy who brings up what the board has said in the past but do remember when guys like me who posted love for his game as a young player was mocked. ...... Wilson is a truck who can beat the hell outa people, skate and post 50 pts a season.

Gold then, now and tomorrow no matter the era.

Doesn't seem like any good reason for scratching him 4 games in a row, maybe trying to get him claimed to go elsewhere or they have no plans to re-sign him end after this year.Or was there some kind of misconduct team is staying quiet about? He's an RFA with arbiration rights. Decent 4th liner, much better player than Johnson.
- RickJ

Could be his agent asked for it.

Rick, speaking for myself, it doesn't take a scout's eye to see/know what jr players look like and the mistakes they make it only takes having seen enough of that level and that is what Bedard looks like in the NHL right NOW. ....... He's 18, should we be surprised? No, but at Game 25 you'd like to see those mistakes start being eliminated.

And what you posted about Gretzky is exactly why I'd rather watch Forsberg play 100 out of 100 times.
- Mr Ricochet

He had better players around him game one than he does game 25.

I was just thinking, you get Tom Wilson and there is a Considerable consequence to bullying Bedsy.
- wiz1901

The discussion wasn’t about “protecting “ Bedard from non existent bullying. The discussion was about the fact guys are hitting less because they have to fight almost every time they hit anyone with a clean hit. Give the guy instigating a fight such a harsh penalty he won’t come to the aid of a teammate who was hit cleanly. Or do you prefer there was less hitting in the NHL too?

Scott Powers
@ByScottPowers
The Blackhawks want Katchouk to play games in Rockford. His last NHL game was Dec. 3. Anderson and Guttman have moved ahead of him on the depth chart since they were recalled. It's unlikely Katchouk gets claimed off waivers.

Scott Powers
@ByScottPowers
The Blackhawks want Katchouk to play games in Rockford. His last NHL game was Dec. 3. Anderson and Guttman have moved ahead of him on the depth chart since they were recalled. It's unlikely Katchouk gets claimed off waivers.
- LAHawk

I read here that he's a solid NHL bottom six player. His cap hit is about $750k; why wouldn't he be claimed?

I read here that he's a solid NHL bottom six player. His cap hit is about $750k; why wouldn't he be claimed?
- mohel

He's probably praying to the Hockey Gods he gets claimed and plays on a well-coached team with structure, discipline and accountability.

If Anderson and Guttman have moved ahead of him, seems like they are probably unconcerned if he get claimed. By next year the younger guys will start taking these spots.

I read here that he's a solid NHL bottom six player. His cap hit is about $750k; why wouldn't he be claimed?
- mohel

It won't matter much. He would only play if claimed by a bottom feeder team. Katchouk wouldn't crack the lineup on a contender. 4th line player who is about the 4th or 5th best forward on our medicore PK.

If he was more physical, won more battles and was more willing to block shots he probably would be on the roster. Other guys passed him on the the depth chart for a reason.

It won't matter much. He would only play if claimed by a bottom feeder team. Katchouk wouldn't crack the lineup on a contender. 4th line player who is about the 4th or 5th best forward on our medicore PK.

If he was more physical, won more battles and was more willing to block shots he probably would be on the roster. Other guys passed him on the the depth chart for a reason.
- breadbag

Not sure the Guttman or Anderson are better, but we’re splitting hairs on guys who likely crack a contending team’s lineup. Joey Anderson is about the most replaceable guy I’ve seen since Reese Johnson. The next wave of forward talent can’t come soon enough.

Not sure the Guttman or Anderson are better, but we’re splitting hairs on guys who likely crack a contending team’s lineup. Joey Anderson is about the most replaceable guy I’ve seen since Reese Johnson. The next wave of forward talent can’t come soon enough.
- ObeseOprah

Sometimes I chuckle at how much time we spend arguing over our plugs. We can only hope that a contender sees something in any of them at the deadline.

He's probably praying to the Hockey Gods he gets claimed and plays on a well-coached team with structure, discipline and accountability.
- stevefrmglencoe

... in the AHL

The discussion wasn’t about “protecting “ Bedard from non existent bullying. The discussion was about the fact guys are hitting less because they have to fight almost every time they hit anyone with a clean hit. Give the guy instigating a fight such a harsh penalty he won’t come to the aid of a teammate who was hit cleanly. Or do you prefer there was less hitting in the NHL too?
- paulr

people need to go back to 2007-08 and 2008-09 (especially OT vs Detroit in game 2) and get a reminder what Kane used to do skating back to play defensive.....it didn't exist. not until Hossa arrived and Q took away PT did 88 become as much of a 200 ft player as 88 could be.

So this endless nitpicking of an 18 yr old kid gets tiresome to read on this thread. I am sure whether it's LR or whoever, the shifts were he seems to skate like a mens league game saving it in the tank for a last second rush....will come to an end....However on a team built intentionally to contend for another top pick, which by all means they DESPERATELY need, does it matter in the short term? WOuld rather see this kid flourish offensively and get that confidence locked in....and then have his defensive game ramped up like Yzerman, and Kane before him? Probably so.

He's probably praying to the Hockey Gods he gets claimed and plays on a well-coached team with structure, discipline and accountability.
- stevefrmglencoe

Got it not a LR fan.....sure if you plugged in another coach the outcomes of these games would change because there is so much skill and experience on this roster.......

I was just thinking, you get Tom Wilson and there is a Considerable consequence to bullying Bedsy.
- wiz1901

Or you just a human punching bag like Burish was until Q arrived to do that part.

To Paul's point.....there are times you need to stick up a for teammate, and times it's a legal hit. That chicken $hit Cousins in Florida turtling after running a guy falls into the 1st pool....Oshie catching Vlassic with his head and blowing him up....is clean.

Somebody on this roster or in the A will figure out that same niche Burish did until it's not needed.

https://x.com/mikecommito...m2Cfk7kftk9A6zKJ_2ng&s=01

Wonder if this will affect his reinstatement, i just don't believe it

Sometimes I chuckle at how much time we spend arguing over our plugs. We can only hope that a contender sees something in any of them at the deadline.
- 333inthe3rd

Isn't that the truth. This has been going on for years - Sikura, Highmore, Gaudette, Borgstrom, Connolly, Perlini, Hayden, Quennville and the list goes on and on.

Isn't that the truth. This has been going on for years - Sikura, Highmore, Gaudette, Borgstrom, Connolly, Perlini, Hayden, Quennville and the list goes on and on.
- boilermaker100

Agreed.....again......it's all about the kids development this year. That's ALL I care about. Bedard, Reichel, Korchinski, Vlassic, Kaiser (when up), etc....a young kid who gets a cup of coffee here and there...same thing.

Rest of them? Who gives a $hit. By the time this team is ready to win, guys like Raddysh etc will be long gone. Only 1 likely still here due to his contract (assuming he doesn't ask out before it) is Jones.

Maximize the grunt's ceilings so you can flip them for future assets like you did with the likes of Rafferty, etc.