Blackhawks veteran Nick Foligno shares adorable story involving Connor Bedard

Chicago Blackhawks veteran Nick Foligno recently shared a delightful story involving rising hockey star Connor Bedard. The story, as shared by Blackhawks insider Charlie Roumeliotis on his Twitter account, paints a vivid picture of a memorable encounter between Foligno's children and the talented young player.

Foligno revealed that he had to give his kids a pep talk in preparation for Connor Bedard's visit to their home. It seems that the excitement was palpable in the Foligno household as they eagerly awaited the arrival of the young hockey sensation.

As soon as Bedard walked in the door, Foligno's children wasted no time and enthusiastically handed him a mini stick, setting the tone for a day filled with hockey-related fun:

"As soon as he walked in, they just handed him a mini stick like, 'Let's go!' Poor kid, he was down on his knees the whole day. But I think he loved it more than they did."

The image of the scene is both adorable and endearing, as the kids' spontaneous gesture clearly demonstrated their admiration for Connor Bedard and their eagerness to engage in some friendly hockey play. Bedard, ever the good sport, obliged without hesitation.

As a result, the young hockey prodigy found himself spending the day on his knees, fully immersed in the joyous playtime with Foligno's kids.

Injury update for Chicago Blackhawks' Taylor Hall

Chicago Blackhawks forward Taylor Hall missed the first day of training camp last Thursday at Fifth Third Arena due to a lower-body injury. Colin Blackwell and prospect Jalen Luypen were also sidelined with lower-body injuries and didn't participate in practice, although Luypen did have a solo skate session beforehand.

At the time, Blackhawks head coach Luke Richardson didn't appear overly concerned about Hall's injury. He told the media that he didn't have enough information to estimate the length of Hall's absence:

"I don't think so, but we're going to just defer till we get more information on that, It's only Day 1, so hopefully tomorrow or the next few days we'll know more."

During the offseason, Hall was acquired by Chicago from Boston, and there were expectations that he would start camp on a line with Connor Bedard. To fill Hall's spot at left wing on the top line with Bedard and Tyler Johnson, Ryan Donato seemed to step in.

Blackwell had undergone successful sports hernia surgery back in March and had been on a 12-week recovery timetable. It remained uncertain whether his current absence was related to that previous injury.