"How about sticking up": Blackhawks' coach Anders Sorensen defends Connor Bedard after penalty controversy but gets trolled by fans

TOI Sports Desk / TIMESOFINDIA.COM / Mar 19, 2025, 02:21 IST

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Chicago Blackhawks' interim head coach Anders Sorensen defended Connor Bedard after the young player received a penalty for 'abuse of officials'. Despite praising Bedard's maturity, fans were dissatisfied with Sorensen's lack of immediate support for the player during the game against the San Jose Sharks. Bedard himself was unclear about the penalty's justification.

"How about sticking up": Blackhawks' coach Anders Sorensen defends Connor Bedard after penalty controversy but gets trolled by fans

Image via Daniel Bartel-Imagn Images

Connor Bedard has been able to prove his worth on the ice but the young Chicago Blackhawks’ player seems to be going through a pretty tough time in his career right now. At the recent match against the San Jose Sharks, not only did Connor Bedard’s team lose but he also received a penalty for “abuse of officials”. This had sparked an uproar among fans and now Anders Sorensen, the interim head coach of the team, has opened up about it.

Chicago Blackhawks’ Interim HC Anders Sorensen Defends Connor Bedard But Ends Up Getting Trolled

As per Chicago Sun-Times’ Ben Pope’s recent post on X, Andres Sorensen said, "Overall, I think he's very mature for being 19, especially with the amount of spotlight that's on him constantly. I'm really impressed with how he handles it.”

He added, "I remember Sidney Crosby went through a lot of that. I remember Peter Forsberg came into the league mild-mannered off the ice, but on the ice, it happens, right? They want to win. They want to be successful."

However, fans are not happy with this answer of his. A fan commented, “What kind of coach sits on his hands with his mouth shut when the star player gets a misconduct in the final 11 minutes for no clear reason? Way to stand up for the team! I don't care about a press conference 3-4 days later.”
Another fan wrote, “Hey Anders . How about showing a little emotion and sticking up for the kid. Both calls were marginal at best.”

A third fan wrote, “When your player gets ejected for BS you should jump in and get ejected too. Send a message that you will stick up for your guys.”
For the unversed, at the match against the San Jose Sharks, Connor Bedard was seen sitting on a bench when ref Chris Rooney came upto the star player for a chat. When the chat ended a few minutes later, Connor Bedard was given the 10 minute penalty for “abuse of officials”.
What shocked fans was the fact that even Connor Bedard was confused as to why he received such a penalty. It is not known what ref Chris Ropney and Connor Bedard spoke about.
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TOI Sports Desk

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