3 least impressive Chicago Blackhawks players from 5-4 OT loss to Carolina Hurricanes feat. Connor Bedard 

The Chicago Blackhawks are continuing their difficult rebuilding process, and find themselves in last place in the standings. They also fired head coach Luke Richardson in late November, indicating they expected much more of their team this season.

They were matched up against the Eastern Conference-contending Carolina Hurricanes on Monday night at United Center, and despite a heroic effort from goaltender Petr Mrazek, they were unable to seal the deal.

Captain Jordan Staal tied the game for the Hurricanes in the third period, and Sebastian Aho secured the extra point with the overtime game-winner, giving the Hurricanes the 4-3 victory. They imporoved to 28-16-3, while the Blackhawks are now 15-28-4.

The game started well enough for the host Blackhawks, who took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission thanks to goals from Philipp Kurashev and Tyler Bertuzzi; the tallies were their fourth and 17th of the seaosn, respectively.

But by the time the second period was halfway over, the Hurricanes had manage to knot the score after goals from Seth Jarvis and Jesperi Kotkaniemi. Chicago then re-gained the lead in the final momenst of the period courtesy of Ryan Donato's 14th of the season.

Despite trying to protect the lead in the third period, Chicago could prevent Jordan Staal's game-tying goal with just under eight minutes remaining in regulation. That set the stage for Aho to strike just 59 seconds into the extra session.

Mrazek finished with 44 saves in a losing effort, while Frederik Andersen made 22 saves on the 25 shots he faced.

3 least impressive Chicago Blackhawks players from 4-3 OT loss to Carolina Hurricanes

#1. Connor Bedard

The No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL draft hasn't been shy about voicing his disappointment in how much losing he's experienced in his young NHL career, but he didn't do enough on Monday night to help his team avoid a loss.

Bedard failed to register a single point, finished with a team-worst -2 rating, and also failed to adequately defend a cross-ice pass to the wide open Aho in overtime:

His frustration was immediately evident, as he blasted the puck back into the net in anger.

#2. Alex Vlasic

While Vlasic didn't finish with a negative plus-minus rating, he also failed to pick up the wide open Aho in overtime, and only noticed the puck after it was blasted by Mrazek for the winning goal.

It was a play that cost them the game and ruined an otherwise spectacular performance from Mrazek, who deserved a better fate.

#3. Teuvo Teravainen

After a brief hot streak, Teravainen has now failed to score in four consecutive games for the Blackhawks, who envisioned him carrying a larger portion of the offensive load.

He was nowhere to be found on the scoresheet against the Hurricanes, finished a -1, and was also guilty of a turnover.

Bedard and Co. will look to bounce back when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning next on Friday.