Connor Bedard debut: Live updates, highlights from Blackhawks vs ...

The Taylor Hall-Connor Bedard-Ryan Donato line has been the Blackhawks' best line. The Blackhawks are leading 13-7 in shot attempts, 8-4 in shots on goal and 7-3 in scoring chances with that line on the ice.

Nothing says Opening Night quite like a round of "fun with small sample sizes." Bedard, thanks in part to his five shots through two periods, has 0.78 individual expected goals (per Evolving Hockey). Another period of that would puts him at about 1.18 for the game. Eighty-two games of that would put him at about 96 for the season, which would give him the most expected goals on record (since 2008-09) by, oh, 40 or so. The kid's process in his first NHL game has been juuuust fine.

So, we're through 40 minutes in Pittsburgh. The Penguins lead the Blackhawks, 2-1.

A lot of people (hand raised) expected a higher-scoring game. So far, that hasn't developed, but there has been a lot of action.

Never fails to amaze me, now in my 20th season covering the Penguins, how the first few games of a season are often a feeling-out process no matter if the team is full of veterans (Penguins) or youngsters (Blackhawks).

You'd like to think, if you're the Penguins, that the veterans would assert control in the third period.

But I suspect if you asked the Blackhawks would they have taken being down only a goal going into the third, they'd have said "yes" and giddily run to the dressing room.

Let's see how this one plays out.

A problem for the Penguins last season was allowing goals quickly after scoring.

That it happened again in their opener will probably concern coach Mike Sullivan. Crosby's goal had given them a fairly tight hold on this game, up 2-0. Instead, within four minutes of taking that 2-0 lead, the Penguins allowed the Blackhawks to swarm in their offensive zone, and Ryan Donato found a loose puck to whip behind Tristan Jarry.

Bedard indeeds gets the secondary assist for his first NHL point.

Sidney Crosby scores a vintage goal: Made a cross-ice feed, skated to net area, then took the pass expertly to find the back of the net. A give-and-go, only within the offensive zone.

The Blackhawks challenged, a Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson tried to keep the puck in the zone.

It was a great keep by Pettersson.

It was a show-you-how-it's-done sequence by Crosby.

I'm not confident he's tracked the shots by Connor Bedard, but I'm also not sure those are trackable. (Seriously, Bedard is like Brett Hull if Brett Hull could skate.)

Jarry's third period will be worth watching. Last season, when he admittedly wasn't healthy, he had a penchant for surrendering goals after the Penguins scored and, also, late in games.

With the Penguins nursing a 1-0 lead near this game's midpoint, Jarry increasingly becomes a figure to watch in this one.

Acciari shoves Bedard to the ice from behind at the end of that power-play shift. Welcome to the big leagues, Mr. Hobbs.

The Blackhawks had 17 shots on goal in the first period. They finished with 17 in the season opener last season against Colorado.

Let the bust talk commence because Connor Bedard lost the opening faceoff to Sidney Crosby and failed to score in the first period of his NHL career. OK, he actually looked pretty darn good, an 0-for-3 performance at the dot aside.

Bedard was all around the Penguins net, particularly later in the period, and fired seven shot attempts at Tristan Jarry. No other Blackhawks player had more than three, and no forward played more than Bedard’s 6:30. Three of those shot attempts hit the net, with Jarry denying Bedard twice on the doorstep, as the rookie demonstrated a real nose for the net. He snuck behind Erik Karlsson for one chance (after a deft little deflection broke up a Penguins clearing attempt and led to a Blackhawks rush), and crashed the net hard on another. As brilliant as his shot is — and that wrister he curled underneath Ryan Graves’ stick sure was brilliant — most NHL goals tend to be of the uglier variety, around the net. If he keeps it up, the goals will surely come.

Pittsburgh’s Bryan Rust had the lone goal of the period.

Connor Bedard's much-discussed release is real, and it's spectacular. I don't think 40 goals is out of the question. And that might be conservative. He can launch.

Most movement I've seen by the Penguins' first power-play unit in years. It's hard to tell what role any of the players is in, except that clearly the intention is to run it through Erik Karlsson.

Coach Mike Sullivan said repeatedly during training camp he wanted more movement on the power play. In the past, that has meant quickly passing the puck. And while that's still a preference, players are jetting in and out of areas in an attempt to freeze penalty killers.

Penguins didn't score on their first power play. But they were accomplishing their other objectives of treating it like a shell game.

Bedard has lost his first three faceoffs - one to Crosby and two to Malkin. Bedard will learn some valuable lessons going up against those two tonight.

I wonder how long Penguins will stick with Erik Karlsson and Evgeni Malkin playing together 5-on-5? Could be magical offensively. But they could give up a lot of chances, too.

Bryan Rust had a disappointing last season, by his own admission. His return to form is crucial if the Penguins want to return to the playoffs. It's not so much that he scores 30 goals — though he's capable; rather, Rust needs to again become a puck-hunting winger who creates space for Sidney Crosby on retrievals. He never looked like himself last season. On the opening goal, he did: used speed to get to the net area and found a way to deflect in a shot.

The Penguins will take more of that from Rust.

He might see time on the power play. But he'll definitely be used as a top penalty killer.

The Penguins social media team conducted a poll of players as to which would score the first goal. Bryan Rust received the most votes, including from Sidney Crosby.

Clearly, the fix was in.

I know Bryan Rust just scored the first goal of the game, but I'm still blown away by how much respect the Penguins power play showed Bedard. The entire unit shifted over toward his spot on the left flank whenever he touched the puck, and Noel Acciari was close enough at times to smell Bedard's hair product.

Lars Eller draws the first penalty of the season for the Penguins. He’s expected to be a top penalty killer, so not a player they wanted in the box.

PK was under 80% last season — a significant reason why the Penguins missed playoffs.

This also gives us our first chance to see Connor Bedard on the Blackhawks' power play.

On the ESPN broadcast, they showed a photo of a middle-school-aged Connor Bedard with Erik Karlsson. Karlsson looked like himself — he had the goatee and everything. Bedard was, like ... 12? Ten? Feeling older than dirt is part of the deal on nights like this, but that one was a little much.

Tristan Jarry can move into sole possession of third place on PIT wins list with a victory over Blackhawks.

He’s tied with Matt Murray.

Marc-Andre Fleury (1st) and Tom Barrasso (2nd).

Those two top guys are headed to HOF — Barrasso in a month.