Conor Bedard

Regina Pats center Connor Bedard is on track to be a franchise-changing player that would be worth all of the pain and suffering Columbus Blue Jackets fans ...

All the pain and suffering Blue Jackets fans have endured not just this year but throughout the 22-year history of the franchise is worth it if they get Bedard. The Blue Jackets need to do everything in their power to get Bedard. A player like that only comes around once in a generation. That player, barring anything crazy, is going to be Regina Pats (WHL) center Connor Bedard. This season in Regina, he's registered 27 goals and 27 assists in just 28 games. Last season, he scored 51 goals and 49 assists in 62 games.

"It's not even close between Bedard and everybody else" at the world juniors, and tanking NHL teams had better be on alert.

I think he’s got the ability to see the ice and make plays,” McKenzie continued. And he’s got a lot of it.” So don’t be surprised if some of the lottery teams start their trade deadline selloff a bit sooner than usual this season. I’ve never seen anybody shoot the puck the way this kid shoots it. Added an NHL GM on Monday, who also requested anonymity: “He is a generational talent and has proven that for several years, despite his age. He’s got the best shot I’ve ever seen out of anybody coming out of junior hockey. Seems to love a challenge to him personally or on a team level.” He’s got the elite, elite shot. Um, even if nobody with the Coyotes will say it publicly, I’m here to tell you the answer is an emphatic yes. But the other benefit, especially with the trades that happen sooner rather than later, will be to further weaken those teams’ current NHL rosters and help fortify the draft lottery chances. What about the “First thing I learned from John Ferguson Sr., my first scouting boss, was to look for guys who ‘want to make a difference.’

Le Canadien n'a pas craché sur sa victoire à la loterie du repêchage, l'été dernier, mais elle constituait presque un cadeau empoisonné : il fallait d'abord ...

Ce candidat au prochain repêchage a marqué deux gros buts dans la victoire de la Suède aux dépens de la Finlande en quarts de finale mardi. Il a aussi un taux de réussite de 97 % au chapitre des entrées de zone en possession de la rondelle. Engström a trois points en cinq matchs et une fiche de +3, deux sommets chez les défenseurs de son équipe. Ce jeune homme de 19 ans est l’un des piliers en défense au sein de la première paire. Dans un scénario moyennement probable, mais réaliste, Montréal pourrait se retrouver avec les 4e et 7e choix, avec un taux de succès de repêcher au premier rang situé à 16 %. La loterie d’avril 2023 aura une signification bien différente, avec les exploits de Connor Bedard dans la Ligue junior de l’Ouest depuis le début de la saison, mais aussi, surtout, ses exploits au Championnat mondial junior.

Connor Bedard, the likely first overall choice in the 2023 NHL draft, is focused on family as he smashes records at the World Juniors.

That morning, Connor checked in with his grandmother Lynn, who had been married to Garth for nearly 55 years. Garth Bedard would have been 75 this past Oct. “Melanie has worked harder than me — quite a bit harder. “I was commuting every day, up to eight hours a day, for 25 years,” he said. “He’d be over there for eight hours at a time,” Tom said. He'd be over there for eight hours at a time. It is not unusual, to this day, for him to take hundreds of shots in one session. He wanted to stay home and (guess what?) play hockey. “There was mini-sticks and all that stuff.” “I’ve been following your career since you got drafted to my hometown and playing with the Pats. “It was all I wanted to do as a kid, and to this day.” “That’s what he always seemed to be doing — not on the ice, but around the house.

Connor Bedard's performance in a rapturous Canada win over Slovakia in the quarterfinals of the World Juniors on Monday would have had people raving even if ...

On the international stage, he was equally undeniable, and the more people see his quickness, his intelligence, and his absolute dream of a shot, the more ready they seem to anoint a new Hall of Famer. But the beauty of falling face first into premium talent means that nobody has to care about the hard part yet. But his play on the ice speaks for itself. “Exceptional status” is a big deal—it’s handed out less than once a year—and while not every player who’s received it has immediately taken a linear path to greatness, it did mark Bedard as a prodigy in the vein of previous exceptions like John Tavares and Connor McDavid. This happened in March 2020, so Bedard’s opportunities to play got a bit complicated from there, but he won Rookie of the Year with the Regina Pats in a very short first season in the WHL, then exploded for 51 goals and 49 assists in a 62-game follow-up campaign. Connor Bedard’s performance in a rapturous Canada win over Slovakia in the quarterfinals of the World Juniors on Monday would have had people raving even if it weren’t attached to the consensus No.

In Halifax, Canadian star forward Connor Bedard has scored everything but a catchy nickname. Breakaway Blog. Opinion ...

[Kasperi Kapanen’s golden goal.](https://www.thestar.com/sports/2016/01/06/kapanen-in-shock-after-finland-wins-gold-at-world-juniors.html) [William Nylander injured](https://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/2016/01/03/disappointed-william-nylander-sent-back-to-toronto-ending-his-world-juniors.html) and the Swedes rolling out doctors to tell us they had nothing to say. [Auston Matthews](https://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/auston-matthews.html) was there. [Mitch Marner.](https://www.thestar.com/topic.mitch_marner.html) So many storylines for a guy who mainly covers the Leafs. A product of the rising level of talent the game is producing. Bedard’s record may be pooh-poohed elsewhere because it includes the two games he played in December last year, when the tournament was cancelled after a couple of days because of a COVID outbreak. I’ve covered a slew of world juniors, going back to 2009 in Ottawa. I’d like to call him Sam, because now he’s [The Record Man.](https://www.thestar.com/news/insight/2012/09/28/the_genius_that_was_sam_the_record_man.html) But that’s a Toronto joke and you have to be a certain age to get it. Bettman (rightly) points out that the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs is the best in any sport. If they keep a flattish cap next year, they’ll reap a bigger windfall by the end of the season because their pandemic debts will be paid (they’re just short of paying it off now) and instead of losing money through escrow, they’ll gain it back. In this instance, I totally agree with commissioner Gary Bettman that this is a bad idea, or a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist. [The Great One.](https://www.thestar.com/topic.wayne_gretzky.html) Super Mario. 35, how much of a fine would they pay to win a Game 7?

There might still be a few folks out there who aren't familiar with Connor Bedard. Maybe you're a casual hockey fan who enjoys following your favorite NHL team ...

This sicko goes out and has a historic night at the World Juniors, all the meanwhile the Flyers are going on a 3-game win streak in California to get themselves further away from that 1st overall pick. At this point I think I'm just going to renounce my Flyers fandom and become a fan of whichever team has the lucky pingpong ball in the draft lottery. Most total points scored by a Canadian at the World Juniors. And the rest of us wanted to see it happen. Most total goals scored by a Canadian at the World Juniors. I'm finding it harder and harder to believe you won't know the name Connor Bedard in just a few more years.

NHL tanking rankings: Who's in prime position to secure Connor Bedard? The Canadiens may end up with the best odds in the NHL Draft Lottery, as they also own ...