Connor Bedard
- Position: Center
- Birth date: July 17, 2005 (19)
- Acquired via: First-round pick (No. 1) in 2023 NHL Draft
- 2023-24 team: Chicago Blackhawks (NHL)
- 2023-24 stats: 61 points (22 G, 39 A), 28 PIM in 68 NHL Games
- Size: 5-foot-10, 185 pounds
- Contract: Two years, $950,000 AAV (entry-level contract)
- Rankings: 1 (Everyone)
- Last T25U25 ranking: No. 1, no movement
The most anticipated storyline of the 2023-2024 season was the debut of Connor Bedard. Drawing attention outside even hockey circles, Bedard was the first superstar prospect of the social media era, and the hype around him was near unprecedented. Considered a generational talent, Bedard was drafted first overall by the Chicago Blackhawks, and entered the league with the lofty expectations of immediately becoming a dynamic offensive player. Due to Bedard’s exemplary shot, high hockey IQ, and elite playmaking abilities, many predicted that Bedard would become a superstar in his own right and would begin to turn the Blackhawks fates around. Despite the laundry list of sky-high expectations set out for Bedard by both the media and the fans, he met every single one.
There’s hardly much left to discuss about Bedard’s rookie season that hasn’t already been said. Despite being given one of the most challenging deployments of any first overall pick, and having the least supportive cast in decades, Bedard still posted the most productive pace from a rookie season since Connor McDavid. With 61 points in only 68 games, Bedard was tied for the team lead in goals (22, with Jason Dickinson) and led by himself in assists (39) and total points (61). While Bedard didn’t cross the point-per-game mark in his rookie season like other generational prospects, he also lacked the support that they had. Whereas McDavid had players like Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Leon Draisaitl and Benoit Pouliot — all considered top-six talent — Bedard played the majority of the season between Nick Foligno, Phillip Kurashev, and Ryan Donato, all considered to be bottom-six players. Bedard had an exemplary season, winning the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie, making the All-Rookie Team, and being voted to the NHL All-Star Game.
For those who didn’t have a chance to watch Bedard consistently last year, he was a human highlight reel. Of the memorable moments, one of those came early in the season when Bedard had his first multi-goal game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. While the first goal showed Bedard’s awesome puck control, the second goal was arguably more impressive as he used his hands to deke the puck and put a backhand shot between the legs of Johansson.
It would be a shame to forget to mention that Bedard also scored a REVERSE Michigan.
Bedard’s production was a joy to watch across the board. He demonstrated absurd control over puck placement and shooting, and was able to effectively manipulate players far bigger and more experienced than him. No matter where Bedard was on the ice, he was always a dynamic scoring threat. Early in the season, he proved that with one of the most electric goals of the year, stealing the puck in the offensive zone, and throwing the puck bar-down on Bobrovsky from the goal line.
Fans also can’t forget about Bedard’s capstone performance – a 5-point night against the Anaheim Ducks. Bedard scored a goal and added four assists in an absolutely dominant display of skill and confidence.
Bedard constantly elevated his play for the difficult competition he was facing and for his teammates as well. There were no other rookies in the league who had the impact Bedard did on the rest of his team. Again, Bedard did all of this with almost no help. Compared to other recent first overall picks, Bedard’s primary point percentage (either scoring the goal or tallying the primary assist) was sublime. McDavid was at 66 percent in his rookie season, Crosby was at 76 — and Bedard was at 82. Furthermore, Bedard generated chances like no other forward on his team. Whether it was finding lanes for an assist or creating highlight-reel goals, no one else on the Blackhawks even came close to his level. He was on an island and yet still found success.
Bedard didn’t take a break from high-level hockey this summer, either. After the season ended, he immediately found himself on the global stage, awarded a spot on Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships. For his age, Bedard had an outstanding tournament. He finished fourth in total points on the team with 8 in 10 games despite starting on the third line, and early on was one of the biggest play-drivers on the team. As the tournament heated up, though, Bedard found himself taking bad penalties and losing his confidence in shooting, opting to make a pass rather than shooting the puck. He ultimately finished the tournament as the 13th forward on Team Canada, but made a mark on his teammates and coaches through his poise and confidence. There’s work to be done in Bedard’s game, but ultimately the flashes he has already shown should offer nothing but confidence in future projections.
As good as he was offensively, Bedard faced his share of struggles during his rookie campaign, largely centered around his physicality and defense. Bedard’s defensive play is still a very raw aspect of his game and needs to continue to be developed. Last season Bedard posted the second worst plus-minus in the league at minus-44. Like many other younger centers, he faced challenges while adjusting to the faster and more physical style of the NHL. Across the board, his possession stats were largely underwhelming, posting a low 5-on-5 shot attempt share (CF%) of 42.58, a number that was minus-1.28 relative to the team rate, per Natural Stat Trick.
Bedard’s inconsistent compete level against stronger opponents limited his effectiveness, often trailing away from the play when the puck was turned over. Still, there’s room for optimism. Bedard’s relative expected goal share was a positive 0.81 percent compared to the average forward on the Blackhawks, showing that Bedard was unlucky. Based upon where Bedard was driving the offense from, and where he had takeaways and limited opponent shots, he should have seen more success but was, again, let down by his linemates.
Aside from the defense, Bedard took a lot of bad hits this season. While he drew plenty of penalties that benefitted the team, Bedard needs to better adjust to the physicality of the NHL as larger, stronger defenseman would often attempt to deliver hits or beat him along the boards. While he proved generally durable during the season, Bedard suffered a broken jaw in against the Devils in January as he did not appropriately react to a hit. Learning to adapt to the physicality — not only in taking hits but giving them back — can add another level to Bedard’s game that will also help him stay healthy long-term.
Bedard has pieces of his game to work on, but his overall profile is incredibly proficient already for one so young. When piecing through his analytics per All Three Zones, Bedard was effective in pretty much every zone. His offense, across the board, was very high level. His only real demerit on the offensive side of the puck was his physicality and effort in puck recovery. His forecheck was almost non-existent as he consistently was bullied along the boards. This isn’t unexpected for an 18-year-old — especially for one on the smaller side — and likely will improve over the course of his career as he better learns to use his size and strength. Even his individual play in the defensive zone wasn’t all too bad – it will just be about consistency and improvement as the team becomes better as a whole.

As Blackhawks fans look to the next season, there are even more expectations. After proving that he belonged in the NHL as an 18-year-old the real question that remains is: How much better can Connor Bedard get?
The Blackhawks brought in a good deal of talent this offseason. Up front, they’ve added two 2 top-six players in Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen, and they’ve brought in some defensive depth in Alec Martinez and TJ Brodie to take some pressure off of Bedard and the forwards in the defensive zone. Having a healthy (and present) team cannot be understated either, even excluding the additions. Last year the Blackhawks lost Taylor Hall, Andreas Athanasiou, Corey Perry, Nick Foligno, Seth Jones, Tyler Johnson, Taylor Raddysh, and Joey Anderson for an extended period of time due to injury or conduct dismissal.
Due to the added talent, and expected growth from players like Lukas Reichel, Bedard’s offensive production is expected to take another leap in his sophomore season. Due to Bedard’s overwhelming talent, work ethic, and love of the game, it can be expected that Bedard will breach the point-per-game mark this year, if not blow past it. His natural scoring ability, combined with another offseason of skating focused training and development, should lead to an increase in his ability to play at a high level all over the ice.
Additionally, Bedard will likely take on an even greater responsibility in terms of playmaking as he’s now become more familiar with some of his teammates and the pace of play in the NHL. Last season, Bedard often couldn’t rely on his linemates as they weren’t able to keep up with him: having higher quality wingers this year should enable him to experiment with more dynamic playmaking now that his team will be able to capitalize.
Furthering his offensive potential, Bedard will continue to be the main driver of the power play but won’t be the only offensive threat. The Blackhawks power play was terrible last year, only converting on 16.6 percent of their attempts. Last year, teams didn’t respect players like Nick Foligno and Phillip Kurashev, so they double covered Bedard in order to take away space as he single handedly controlled the Blackhawks power play. With the addition of two more top-six talents and more developed chemistry with players on the team last season, Bedard should find it far easier to make space and create on the power play, which should help dramatically increase his point totals. It’ll be nice to have Taylor Hall back again, too.
It’s hard to paint Bedard’s rookie season as anything but a massive success. He more than lived up to the considerable hype around his arrival, and gave Blackhawks fans a glimmer of hope for their future as well. With his dynamic skillset, game-breaking shot, and competitive drive all around the ice, he established himself as one of the most promising young talents in hockey, coming first in Corey Pronman’s ranking at The Athletic. As he heads into the next season, expectations are arguably just as high, but Bedard has proven that he’s ready to face them head on. The focus will shift from how good he is to simply how great he can become, with fans and media awaiting the next chapter in his already decorated career. Bedard’s potential to become not only a franchise cornerstone for the Blackhawks, but one of the best players in the league is evident. His development will be pivotal in defining the future of the franchise, and potentially establishing the next dynasty in Chicago.
Not that anyone asked – but if everything goes right, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Bedard flirt with 100 points this coming season.
2024 Blackhawks Top 25 Under 25 list:
No. 1: Connor Bedard
No. 2: Artyom Levshunov
No. 3: Alex Vlasic
No. 4: Frank Nazar
No. 5: Kevin Korchinski
No. 6: Philipp Kurashev
No. 7: Oliver Moore
No. 8: Lukas Reichel
No. 9: Roman Kantserov
No. 10: Sacha Boisvert
Nos. 11-15: Del Mastro, Kaiser, Vanacker, Commesso, Lardis
Nos. 16-20: Rinzel, Greene, Dach, Allan, Hayes
Nos. 21-25: Phillips, Gajan, Mustard, Ludwinski, Savoie
Honorable Mentions: Crevier, Slaggert, Spellacy, Stjernborg