"The Blackhawks sent forward Brandon Saad to juniors after practice Wednesday.

The Hawks assigned Saad, 18, to the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League after two games in the NHL.

Saad, the 43rd selection in this summer's draft, had two shots in 13:05 in his NHL debut in the Hawks' 2-1 loss Friday to the Dallas Stars.

"It's obviously an adjustment going from the preseason to the regular season," Saad said Wednesday before the move.

"We have a great group of guys here and a great team, and they've helped me out a lot.""