New Jersey Devils defenseman Brenden Dillon is known for being a physical and feisty defender, and that was evident early in Wednesday’s late-night tilt against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Dillon delivered several checks in the first period at the United Center, with most of them occurring on Blackhawks’ star forward Connor Bedard. He clearly was trying to get Bedard off his game, as he threw a hit whenever he got a chance to on the 20-year-old. The most notable one came when Bedard was skating into the offensive zone with speed and made a drop pass to Teuvo Teravainen, and that’s when Dillon stepped up and crunched him with a high hit.
But Dillon’s worst hit of the night came later in the opening frame, as he tried to take out another red-hot Blackhawks forward in Tyler Bertuzzi. Dillon came rushing into the corner and threw an elbow up high into Bertuzzi as he was right along the glass. That was a very dangerous hit, and Dillon was rightfully taken to the penalty box and assessed a two-minute minor penalty for boarding.
Dangerous hit from Brenden Dillon, who according to the broadcast has already laid three hits on Bedard in the first period. Here he elbows and boards Bertuzzi pic.twitter.com/q7Xybkxb4q
— BHF (@BlackhawksFocus) November 13, 2025
The Blackhawks would go on to capitalize on their ensuing power play, with Bedard cashing in for his 10th goal of the season, while Bertuzzi picked up an assist on the play. Fitting.
What’s also fitting is that the Department of Player Safety announced on Thursday morning that Dillon “has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for boarding Chicago’s Tyler Bertuzzi” in the first period.
New Jersey’s Brenden Dillon has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for boarding Chicago’s Tyler Bertuzzi.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) November 13, 2025
Dillon is a repeat offender, as he was suspended for three games back in February 2024, when he was a member of the Winnipeg Jets. Dillon caught Pittsburgh Penguins’ forward Noel Acciari with an illegal check to the head. He was also previously suspended when playing for the San Jose Sharks in 2017 for a slashing penalty against then-Washington Capitals defenseman (and Blackhawks legend) Madison Bowey.
Fortunately, Bertuzzi was alright and played the remainder of the game for the Blackhawks. He led all Hawks’ skaters with four shots on goal and extended his point streak to four games.
The next time these two teams meet isn’t until March 29th, 2026, but you have to wonder if what transpired on Wednesday will carry over to that contest. Dillon was out of line in this first matchup, and the Blackhawks could be looking for some revenge when they face off later this season at Prudential Center.
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