Connor Bedard had a busy offseason for the Chicago Blackhawks. First, he had offseason shoulder surgery, and then Bedard was named the captain of the Blackhawks.

Now, an update on the captain's progress in returning from shoulder surgery has been given, per Scott Powers of The Athletic.

“Connor Bedard isn't close yet to joining the Blackhawks for practice, Blashill said,” Powers posted on X, formerly Twitter.

The news given by head coach Jeff Blashill fits with the timeline initially given for the return of Bedard. When he had surgery in the early part of July, the original timeline was a four-month recovery, which would take him out of the first part of the season.

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Bedard, the former first overall selection by the Blackhawks in 2023, is coming off his best season as a pro. He played in 69 games for the team, finding the back of the net 30 times, while adding 45 assists. This gave him career highs in goals, assists, and points.

With Bedard out of the lineup, Frank Nazar is expected to take over as the top-line center. The 2022 first-round selection scored 15 goals and added 26 helpers in 2025-26, while playing in 66 games. With Nazar moving up to the top line, Anton Frondell, who was the third overall selection in the 2025 NHL Draft, is likely to fill in on the second line. He came over from Djurgårdens IF in the SHL last year, playing 12 games for the Blackhawks. In that time, he scored three times and added six assists.

The Blackhawks will open the season on opening night for the NHL, visiting the Vegas Golden Knights on September 29.