Last night’s loss in St. Louis was a tough one. Not just because of the final score, or how the Blackhawks played, but because with 0.8 seconds left in regulation, Brayden Schenn jammed Connor Bedard out of the faceoff circle, sending him straight to the locker room in serious pain. Chicago immediately ruled Bedard out for Saturday’s matchup against the Red Wings and said they would provide more information on Monday. That means he could be out for a significant period of time.
With Bedard out of the lineup and the Blackhawks already having a roster spot open, that meant it was time to call up a replacement for at least the length of the young superstar’s absence. And while Bedard’s injury is terrible news for Chicago, they couldn’t have done a better job of replacing him.
On Saturday morning, the Blackhawks called up star prospect Nick Lardis to give their offense a much-needed boost. I mentioned last night that it could be a good time for Lardis to make his NHL debut, and Chicago obliged.
The 20-year-old has enjoyed a pretty stellar season so far in Rockford, having scored his 13th goal last night which puts him fourth in the entire AHL. He also ranks second among all rookies in goals and first in points with 26.
But it isn’t necessarily this season that the Blackhawks have been focused on, but what he’s already done at lower levels. Last year in the OHL, Lardis scored a whopping 71 goals and 117 points in 65 games, rocketing the former third-round pick to the AHL ranks. So far, he’s proven that he can do it at the next level.
If nothing else, this move will turn the Bedard-less Blackhawks from a pretty miserable thing to watch back into must-see TV. Lardis is an extraordinary scorer and will make Chicago fun to watch for however long he’s here.
As for the length of his NHL stint, that may be up to Lardis. If he can perform with the Blackhawks at a level anywhere close to what he’s done for the IceHogs, it’ll be hard to send him back to the AHL once Bedard is healthy. There may be a spot for him, as they can send Dominic Toninato back down and make Sam Lafferty a healthy scratch on most nights. But if he shows that he’s not quite ready, the Blackhawks could be fine, as long as Bedard isn’t out for too long of a stint. Either way, it’ll be interesting to see whether Lardis can keep up. He’s a huge part of Chicago’s future plans, and this stint could be pretty telling.
