BLOG: Bedard, Korchinski Prepared to Build Off Energy in Saturday’s Home Opener

After going 2-3 in the Blackhawks’ opening road trip, the team returned to the United Center on Saturday to play its’ first home game in the 2023-24 season.

For players like Connor Bedard and Kevin Korchinski, they will have the experience of their first home opener with the Blackhawks after a few preseason contests. But now, they are prepared to feel the excitement of the Chicago fanbase in a regular season matchup against the defending Stanley Cup Champions, Vegas Golden Knights.  

“I'm really excited, as is the whole team,” Bedard said. “[After] watching videos of their Stanley Cup runs and stuff like that, the fans love the Hawks and we're super excited to play in front of that.”

With a passionate fanbase like the Blackhawks, the two rookies know they can try to build off the high energy that the fans can ignite. While they experienced a taste of what the fans can bring in preseason, Korchinski stated that it still doesn’t add up to what a regular game can bring. 

“It should be crazy,” Korchinski said. “I'm going to be probably become blown [away] by how cool it is. Everybody says it’s one of the craziest rinks to play in, so it's going to be exciting.” 

Out of the first five games they played, the Blackhawks competed in four home openers to kick the trip off and are the last team in the league to kick their home games off. 

Head coach Luke Richardson noted that with first home openers, it’s okay with young players to experience some nerves. However, he knows they can lean on some of the veterans within the team to navigate the night. 

“They should enjoy it and there should be some nerves in there,” Richardson said. “They have their peers to kind of comfort them by their side, again, that’s why we count on our veteran guys to help out in that area.”

While some players are ready to be in the midst of the season and move past home openers, Bedard understands the importance of every game and the knowledge he can gain from it. 

“For us, every game is important,” Bedard said. “Every game we can learn, so we're looking forward to tonight and should be fun.”