For a brief moment Saturday, Connor Bedard looked like his usual self.
The struggling Blackhawks star darted in on a power play and ripped a hard, well-placed shot that beat Flyers goalie Aleksei Kolosov, rang off the post and nearly bounced in off Kolosov’s back.
It was the kind of play Bedard made almost every night last season. It also resembled his October form earlier this season, when he was playing fairly well but just not getting much luck. If he kept it up Saturday, the outcome might’ve been different.
Tentativeness crept back into Bedard’s game as the afternoon progressed, however, and he yet again finished with zero shots on goal — albeit on six attempts — as the Hawks lost to the Flyers 3-2 in overtime after blowing a two-goal lead.
“We just spent too much time in our [defensive] zone,” coach Luke Richardson told reporters in Philadelphia. “Our goalie was great all game, but just a couple breakdowns on faceoffs in the ‘D’-zone [cost us]. [There was] a little bit of panic in our game when we got the puck in the ‘D’-zone. We were not making plays; we were just flipping it out and not getting through that neutral zone.”
On a third-period rush, Bedard’s lagging confidence was evident when opted to try a cross-ice pass with a very low probability of success instead of testing Kolosov with his one-of-a-kind shot.
And on two offensive-zone entries to begin overtime, Bedard turned the puck once and missed the net with a shot the second time. That miss led Hawks defenseman Alex Vlasic to take a holding penalty, and the Flyers converted the ensuing power play.
Richardson — as has become a habit — switched Bedard’s linemates halfway through the game, moving him away from Jason Dickinson and Joey Anderson’s checking line and putting him back at center between Taylor Hall and Teuvo Teravainen. Playing him with Teravainen makes a lot more sense than with Anderson, but it’s not surprising that the new trio didn’t click immediately, considering how little time they’ve had to build chemistry.
Bedard, whose goal drought extended to 12 straight games, has now gone consecutive games with zero shots on goal for the first time in his young career; he had previously been held without only five times in 87 games. He did unleash one tight-angle shot late in the second period that looked on-goal but was ruled not.
Furthermore, he has tallied only six shots on goal in his last seven games combined, and opponents have outshot the Hawks 58-28 cumulatively during his five-on-five ice time. In other words, he has been thoroughly stifled for multiple weeks now.
Flyers rookie Matvei Michkov buried the overtime winner after Nick Foligno, who was on the ice for all three Flyers goals, lost coverage on the penalty kill. Back in the third period, the Flyers had scored twice in less than three minutes to tie the game.
It was fitting — and painful — that Michkov scored the winner, considering how frequently he and Bedard will be compared throughout their careers. They were the two most-discussed prospects in the 2023 draft class, and off the ice, they’re friends and text semi-regularly.
Michkov fell to the Flyers’ seventh pick due to concerns he might stay in Russia for years, but the Flyers ended up getting him into North America with ease, and he has rewarded them with 16 points in his first 19 NHL games.
“It’s funny: When you’re playing against people, you try to create a rivalry, but usually you’re friends and you want to see that guy succeed,” Bedard had said Friday. “I’m always rooting for [Michkov]. He’s a fun guy to watch.”
Lukas Reichel (two points) and Petr Mrazek (34 saves, including several miraculous ones) were the lone bright spots for the Hawks.