Connor Bedard hasn't played a hockey game since fracturing his jaw on Jan. 5, but just under two weeks later, the Chicago Blackhawks rookie phenom was spotted back on the ice.

The 18-year-old skated on Monday for the first time since suffering the ailment on a check from New Jersey Devils defenseman Brendan Smith in the first period of a 4-2 Chicago loss.

Although seeing Bedard back on the ice is excellent news for Hawks fans — and hockey fans in general — his timeline of 6-8 weeks remains in place.

“I don’t know how they check that,” Hawks head coach Luke Richardson told NHL.com's Tracey Myers on Monday. “They do a scan or something. I know they do that with other bone breaks, to see if there’s cloudiness. But with the plate, I think there’s a specific timeline, so they’re probably going to stick close to it.”

Connor Bedard fishbowl coming soon?

Connor Bedard (Chicago Blackhawks) with injury symbol

Bedard was seen sporting a full-face shield, and was skating and working lightly with the puck over a 45-minute session.

“He’s been begging, and they [doctors] said it’s OK, but he’s been getting specific instructions,” Richardson said about Bedard's recovery. “He’s not allowed to take slap shots, so he’s not allowed to really clench right now. If they see that, they may pull a rug out from under him.

“But I think he’s just eager and it’ll be good for him to get moving. He just has to be very careful, [with the] early stages of clenching. I don’t even know if he can put anything in there because it’s not completely wired shut, but I think it’s elastic bands on it that keep it so there’s a minimal amount of movement.”

Bedard was selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Hawks in the 2023 NHL Draft, and has immediately become the only exciting thing about the 2023-24 roster. At 12-29-2, Chicago is already out of playoff contention, last in the Central Division, and likely already looking to next season.

But the return of Bedard will be an enormous boost to a very poor hockey club.

“He’s been in the gym, he’s obviously back skating,” Chicago D-man Kevin Korchinski explained. “I didn’t even know he was going to skate today, but he’s itching to get back. Once he gets back, he’ll be fresh, he’ll be ready to go. It’s probably the longest break he’s had off hockey for a while, so, yeah, he’ll be excited to go and be humming out there.”

Despite missing his team's last five games, Bedard leads the Hawks — and all NHL rookies — in scoring with 15 goals and 33 points over his first 39 career games. He was named to the 2024 NHL All-Star Game in Toronto next month, but will unlikely be able to participate as he continues to recover from the fractured jaw.

Still, Connor Bedard getting back on the ice is a great first step, and it's only a matter of time before the phenom is back creating magic in the Windy City.