DALLAS -- Defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson and winger Patrick Sharp both sat out practice prior to the Blackhawks leaving for Dallas for their game Friday against the Stars. But both of them will be in the lineup.

Center Jonathan Toews will miss his 12th game in a row with concussion symptoms when the Blackhawks face the Stars in Dallas on Friday.

Toews did not partake in practice Thursday at Johnny's IceHouse after briefly skating a day earlier. He will not travel with the team to Dallas. He last played on Feb. 19 against the St. Louis Blues.

"Whether it's a setback or it's part of the process, that's what we're dealing with," coach Joel Quenneville said. "I think if we saw him out there, it would be fine. But that's all part of it.

After a string of good luck, the Blackhawks have suffered their first significant injury of the season. Patrick Sharp will be out three to four weeks with a left wrist/hand injury.

Not long after scoring the game-winning goal in overtime against the New York Islanders on Thursday night, Patrick Sharp got even better news.

"I called my wife after the game and was expecting to hear congratulations, nice goal or good game or something," Sharp said. "The first thing she said was, 'I think I'm having the baby tonight.' I forgot about hockey pretty quick."

By Ben Meyer-Abbott bmeyer-abbott@suntimes.com
Twitter: @BMACST

Patrick Sharp had seen the move before.

By Ben Meyer-Abbott bmeyer-abbott@suntimes.com
Twitter: @BMACST

Brandon Saad will make his NHL debut tonight alongside Blackhawks stars Jonathan Toews and Patrick Sharp on the team's top line.

Blackhawks forward Patrick Sharp practiced for the first time this preaseason Friday after an emergency appendectomy on Sept. 12 sidelined him at training camp.

Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville was the bearer of some good and bad news Thursday after practice at the United Center.

The Patrick-Kane-at-center experiment will face its first real test Wednesday at the United Center when the Blackhawks host the Detroit Red Wings for their fifth preseason game.

Oh yeah, apparently Kane's surgically repaired left wrist is good to go too.

The idea of playing Patrick Kane -- one of the best wingers in the NHL -- at center raised a lot of eyebrows for its unexpectedness, but also concerns for do-everything Patrick Sharp.

Sharp, who has played center and wing successfully in the past, has been sidelined since undergoing an emergency appendectomy just days before training camp began for the Blackhawks.

But coach Joel Quenneville insists the two are unrelated.