Connor Bedard looks 'a lot like himself' in Blackhawks' loss to Capitals

Connor Bedard was held off the scoresheet in his return from injury Friday as the illness-ravaged Blackhawks lost to the Capitals 5-1.

Coach Jeff Blashill initially slotted Bedard on the wing but shifted him back to center for some shifts as the game went on. He ended up playing a healthy 17 minutes and looked uninhibited by his recovering right shoulder, although that might not entirely have been the case.

‘‘Part of it is trying to feel out what’s going to hurt and what’s not, so he felt probably more comfortable at the end than he did in the beginning,’’ Blashill said.

Capitals forward Nick Dowd stripping Bedard cleanly during a Hawks power play in the first period was a reminder that Bedard isn’t untouchable. But he ultimately generated several good looks — four shots on goal — that easily could have gotten him on the board against a goalie weaker than Logan Thompson.

That included a pretty rush early in the third period on which Bedard blew past defenseman John Carlson and curled in for a Grade A chance.

‘‘I felt fine,’’ Bedard said. ‘‘It was one of those games where the puck was bouncing around a little bit. [It was] tough to get a lot of crisp pucks. But I definitely have better.’’

Said defenseman Matt Grzelcyk: ‘‘He looked a lot like himself. We’re all super-happy to have him back.’’

Oliver Moore and Ryan Greene took all of Bedard’s faceoffs, and Blashill said Bedard will continue not taking any draws ‘‘for the foreseeable future.’’ That’s presumably to protect his shoulder, which he injured Dec. 12 while taking a faceoff.

The Capitals opened a 3-0 lead in the first period against Hawks goalie prospect Drew Commesso and protected it well. Moore scored the lone goal for the Hawks, who had their four-game winning streak snapped.

Stomach bug

Goalies Spencer Knight and Arvid Soderblom, forward Ilya Mikheyev and defenseman Louis Crevier missed the game because of a stomach bug, and others battled through symptoms to play. Captain Nick Foligno, for one, missed the morning skate but managed to dress.

‘‘Certainly, [we] talk about ‘no excuses,’ but the reality is that a lot of guys didn’t feel very good,’’ said Blashill, who personally suffered from ‘‘about 3 a.m. to noon’’ before recovering enough to coach the game.

Knight participated in the morning skate and was slated to start, but he fell ill late in the afternoon. That forced Commesso to make his third career NHL appearance — and first this season — after driving himself from Rockford into the city. Dave Nozzolillo, a senior vice president at Wintrust by day, was the emergency backup.

The Hawks will get little rest before visiting the Predators on Saturday. Mikheyev is expected to play, but others might fall ill before the puck drops. Blashill said he didn’t know who would start in goal.

‘‘We’ve struggled when we’re not feeling our best,’’ Bedard said. ‘‘When we have our legs and we’re going, I think we’re always really good.’’

Rude welcome

Defenseman Kevin Korchinski, the No. 7 overall pick of the 2022 draft, also was brought up Friday for his first NHL appearance of the season. He got a rude welcome back.

Korchinski’s loose gap allowed Connor McMichael to score on a breakaway for the Capitals’ second goal, then he couldn’t find a puck in his skates and ended up falling on Commesso before their fourth goal.

A handful of turnovers and missed assignments plagued his performance, too. The Capitals outshot the Hawks 10-2 during his 14 minutes of ice time.

Blashill’s structure

Assistant Mike Vellucci, who ran the morning skate in Blashill’s stead, raved about the way his boss has run things this season.

"His structure’s outstanding, and the communication . . . not just with the players but with the coaching staff," Vellucci said. "We know what our responsibilities are. We know, when we come to work, what we have to do. It’s the same as the players.

"Everybody craves structure, right? . . . This team has needed structure, and [he has] put it in place. He’s demanding, not demeaning, and he holds everybody accountable."