(Photo credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images)

Nearly four weeks after sustaining an upper-body injury, Chicago Blackhawks leading scorer Connor Bedard returned to practice on Tuesday with potential to play as soon as Friday against the Washington Capitals.

Bedard, who piled up 19 goals and 25 assists in 31 games before getting hurt on Dec. 12 at St. Louis, did not participate for the entirety of the team's 45-minute practice.

Head coach Jeff Blashill declared Bedard won't suit up for the Blackhawks' home game Wednesday against the Blues, but that he'll be considered day-to-day beyond that.

'Kept the timeline pretty (under) wraps,' Bedard said. 'But like I said, I'm feeling good and hopefully pretty soon I can get back out there.'

Before Bedard suffered his injury - purportedly a right shoulder issue - he ranked among the NHL's leading scorers and appeared to be enhancing his chances to make Canada's Olympic team. But when the team was revealed last week, the 20-year-old center was not on the list.

'You know, there's disappointment for sure,' Bedard said. 'Everybody in Canada would want to be on that team - or any country that's going. But there's so many great players and they've got tough decisions to make, so obviously you respect that. But every player would say they would want to be on that team and disappointed not to.

'It's a great team. You can't be mad at the roster they picked. So there's no hard feelings for me.'

Bedard said Team Canada officials called him before the team was announced. As part of the conversation, they told the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft that he's on their standby list.

The Blackhawks owned a 13-12-6 record after completing their game on Dec. 12, then proceeded to lose seven of their first eight games without him. Chicago carries a three-game winning streak into Wednesday's game against St. Louis.

'We were losing, but there was so many positives,' Bedard said. 'You could just tell it was just a matter of time before we started getting the wins - and so many guys have stepped up and have been playing great.

'It sucks being out and watching every game and not being able to contribute is the hardest thing in the world, but just seeing how we're playing and just keep getting better is obviously exciting to watch.'

--Field Level Media