C Connor Bedard (2023, 1st, CHI) Part 6

[jj cale]

I have absolutely zero problem with anyone thinking that Bedard will not be a generational player at the NHL level. He definitely has the least obvious path to becoming so out his comparables in Crosby and McDavid. But to definitively say his pre-NHL body of work is any less impressive than Sid and McD is either wrong or disingenuous. And to group him in with Lafreniere, Hughes and Eichel, etc. as a prospect is just plain negligent.

As someone who has watched every game he has played since he entered the WHL as a 15 year old (including international play) this is my take:

A LOT of his game will have to change to succeed at the NHL level. He will put up points from the start, but like McDavid there will be a huge difference from having big statistical seasons and leading his team to the playoffs and beyond.

Among my concerns:

Footspeed/first step - his skating is fine and his edges elite but in junior as a centre he relied on deep regroups below his own D so that he could get the puck at top gear and overwhelm his opponent. He is incredibly hard to stop when he has the puck in full flight but in the NHL it will be a lot harder to get the time and space to do so. Even though he dominated the WJC’s, I found him playing wing and getting the puck on the half wall at a standstill to really mute his rush offense unless he cheated.

Long shifts, decision making, etc. - playing for such a bad team in Regina and being relied on so heavily for offense really harboured some bad habits. 2 minute shifts, dangling as the last man back, and taking low percentage shots are just a few of things that he will be forced to change at the next level.

All that said, he literally always adapts and finds a way to deliver. And not just deliver but deliver in the biggest moments. Has there honestly ever been a prospect who has clutched up time and time again like Bedard has? Every single time. There are no certainties and a lot of reasons Bedard might not reach generation status when it’s all said and said and done but given what we’ve seen at this point would you really bet against him?
I sure as hell won’t be.

Great post, I agree.

Having said that I think Even if Bedard turns out to be a Kane level player hawk fans should still be over the moon as IMO he was just a shade below Crosby and Ovechkin at his very best, He would do very well to have his kind of career in Chicago and those are pretty big shoes for him to fill on it's own before we even start thinking about generational status.

His rookie season is going to be a lot of fun to watch and discuss.

 

[ijuka]

His average skating will not allow him to do that at the NHL level.

Let's see.

Connor Bedard

June 2023 - Bedard has been selected 1st overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2023 NHL Draft. Curtis Rines April 2023 - If there was any doubt that Bedard deserved the first-overall pick before the World Juniors, that was quickly erased with his historic performance at the under-20...

dobberprospects.com

A true generational talent who possesses a wide array of deadly shots in his arsenal. Elite level hands, vision, and skating ability to go along with his shooting skill should make him a star in the NHL from day one.

Connor Bedard Scouting Report: 2023 NHL Draft #1

Today we bring you our Connor Bedard Scouting Report: The undisputed gem of the 2023 NHL Draft, Bedard is the next generational superstar.

lastwordonsports.com

Bedard is a very good skater. While he is not the best skater in this draft class, he is still in the top echelon. He has a very good first step and excellent acceleration. Bedard can fool defenders with his ability to change speeds both with and without the puck. While he is not an absolute speedster, Bedard still skates well enough to create off the rush. His ability to control the puck and make plays while moving at top speed makes him seem even faster. He also has very good edgework and agility. Bedard can weave in and out of traffic both with and without the puck. His low centre of gravity gives him excellent balance. It is very difficult to knock him off the puck. He is also able to win battles on the boards and in front of the net. This area of his game should only improve as he gains weight and muscle on his frame.

Can you get me a quote that Bedard is an average skater?

 

[bigdog16]

Let's see.

Connor Bedard

June 2023 - Bedard has been selected 1st overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2023 NHL Draft. Curtis Rines April 2023 - If there was any doubt that Bedard deserved the first-overall pick before the World Juniors, that was quickly erased with his historic performance at the under-20...

dobberprospects.com

Connor Bedard Scouting Report: 2023 NHL Draft #1

Today we bring you our Connor Bedard Scouting Report: The undisputed gem of the 2023 NHL Draft, Bedard is the next generational superstar.

lastwordonsports.com

Can you get me a quote that Bedard is an average skater?

Lol go find me what those guys were saying about Lafreniere and Kakko pre draft. Those scouting services are the same as the weatherman, they are right about half the time and wrong the other half.

Should we go dig up what you were saying about Kakko pre draft or did you delete those comments? That was an embarassing L for you.

My point is that scouting players isnt an exact science. In my eyes he isnt an elite skater. In your eyes Kakko was the best Finnish player in history and was going to put up 100+ pts in his rookie year.

You do realize it is like you and like 5 random HF/twitter scouts in the whole world that actually believe he is an "average skater". Not a single professional scout says that at all.

If your take is Bedard is an average skater it is really hard to take anything you say about Bedard seriously.

Im not asking you to respond. You dont have to take me seriously if you dont want, not gonna ruin my day. But I will blow this thread back up when he has around 20-25 points halfway thru the season

 

[Mrfenn92]

Lol go find me what those guys were saying about Lafreniere and Kakko pre draft. Those scouting services are the same as the weatherman, they are right about half the time and wrong the other half.

Should we go dig up what you were saying about Kakko pre draft or did you delete those comments? That was an embarassing L for you.

My point is that scouting players isnt an exact science. In my eyes he isnt an elite skater. In your eyes Kakko was the best Finnish player in history and was going to put up 100+ pts in his rookie year.


Im not asking you to respond. You dont have to take me seriously if you dont want, not gonna ruin my day. But I will blow this thread back up when he has around 20-25 points halfway thru the season

And when he doesn’t have those low of those points will you “blow” up this thread?

 

[authentic]

Great post, I agree.

Having said that I think Even if Bedard turns out to be a Kane level player hawk fans should still be over the moon as IMO he was just a shade below Crosby and Ovechkin at his very best, He would do very well to have his kind of career in Chicago and those are pretty big shoes for him to fill on it's own before we even start thinking about generational status.

His rookie season is going to be a lot of fun to watch and discuss.

I think the fact that he's gone to a franchise where he has Kane's shoes to fill instead of Lemieux or Gretzky's will probably be a good thing for him. But will he get another elite center like Crosby and McDavid did because it could be tougher in that sense to produce when you don't have another center to take on some of the load.

 

[jj cale]

I think the fact that he's gone to a franchise where he has Kane's shoes to fill instead of Lemieux or Gretzky's will probably be a good thing for him. But will he get another elite center like Crosby and McDavid did because it could be tougher in that sense to produce when you don't have another center to take on some of the load.

Maye they nab Celebrini next draft..................their new Toews to play with him.

Chicago will be pretty bad again this year.

 

[Mathieukferland]

Maye they nab Celebrini next draft..................their new Toews to play with him.

Chicago will be pretty bad again this year.

They were once teammates in minor hockey funny enough, would be funny if they were 1-2 C on Chicago

 

[EbonyRaptor]

Maye they nab Celebrini next draft..................their new Toews to play with him.

Chicago will be pretty bad again this year.

Nah - don't want to be hoggish and get the #1 pick again - the Hawks will get pick #2 and select Cole Eiserman. Hawks fans will be pleased as punch to watch Bedard and Eiserman score a gajillion goals over the next 15 years.

 

[EbonyRaptor]

They were once teammates in minor hockey funny enough, would be funny if they were 1-2 C on Chicago

We'll see how the season plays out but right now I prefer Eiserman over Celebrini because I think he's a better pure goal scorer and want him to be Bedard's wing man. With the other top-6 level prospects the Hawks have - Nazar, Reichel and Moore - none of them are pure goal scorers like Eiserman is.

 

[Artorius Horus T]

View attachment 728156
Does this look like someone who “is not a really good skater”, whilst skating by an entire team?

Again as I’ve said he’s not McDavid in terms of straight away speed but this notion he’s some below average skater is hilarious, his edgework specifically is reminiscent of some of the best NHL skaters

i tvink this is a bad example.

its a sped up slomo clip
it is taken out of context

It looks like, Czech players are
trying to change, Canada is in middle of a change, Czech players are caught by Canadian player who has just prior stolen the puck, that player quickly passes the puck to Bedard and heads to the bench.
Czech players are standing still, where as Bedard comes with max speed.
It looks like Connor has tons of speed but, looks can.. you know.

Now obviously CB is not slow skater, duh, however, he is 5 foot 9½ and a center, he doesnt have advantage in the pros, what he have had in the juniors, great, elite skating would make the transition easier.

Even if it isnt a huge weakness, it is one of his weaknesesses, the skating. These days there are lots of good, great skaters in the NHL, lot of D can match his speed, who are bigger and stronger.

He needs to learn how to shield himself, with the puck and find free space for his shot, his playmaking.

I think lack of elite skating, pushes him to disadvantage to other smaller players, who are also very skilled

Well this is my opinion, view

 

[bigdog16]

And when he doesn’t have those low of those points will you “blow” up this thread?

Im fine with you guys calling me out and telling me im an idiot

 

[Naster Okan]

Im fine with you guys calling me out and telling me im an idiot

Respect

 

[hawksrule]

Im fine with you guys calling me out and telling me im an idiot

Done.

 

[TimeZone]

Anyone posting about Bedard having anywhere near "average skating" should not be taken seriously.

His edges are absolutely elite, his speed and acceleration are excellent as well.

No, he's not McDavid or MacKinnon, but he's still an A level skater.

 

[jj cale]

Nah - don't want to be hoggish and get the #1 pick again - the Hawks will get pick #2 and select Cole Eiserman. Hawks fans will be pleased as punch to watch Bedard and Eiserman score a gajillion goals over the next 15 years.

Sounds good to me, Montreal can scoop Celly up..............Deal !!

 

[Mrfenn92]

Sounds good to me, Montreal can scoop Celly up..............Deal !!

Good deal for both sides

 

[CallMeShaft]

The only people who are disputing that he's the best prospect since McDavid are a handful of folks on this site.

So you can't say Bedard is the undisputed best prospect since McDavid; only because a few on the internet forum HFBoards dispute that claim.

 

[Eternal Leaf]

Oh if you’re new here since the draft they aren’t even the worst ones, a certain Devils fan questions whether he can even reach Eichel’s level, let alone Hughes

And that particular Devils fan used to say the same thing about McDavid when he was a prospect. Look at how that worked out.

 

[I am Bettman]

I think he is the best prospect since Mcdavid, but I also think the hype has gotten overblown (slightly). I think he has some potential to be a generational player, but I think it is more likely that he is a very high level franchise player that is half a step down from generational. More like a Patrick Kane than a Crosby. I would love it if he is generational though, always great to see more talent in the league.

 

[belfour30]

Pronman: How does Connor Bedard compare to recent No. 1 NHL Draft picks?

We asked five NHL scouts and executives to rank the last nine No. 1 picks in the NHL Draft and Connor Bedard.

www.google.com

I think it's a very fair article and the scouts polled were split between Bedard and Matthews being 2nd best, with McDavid being a clear cut above for those that don't have a subscription.

They said Bedard is not generational and considered him a Patrick Kane level prospect.

 

[JackSlater]

Pronman: How does Connor Bedard compare to recent No. 1 NHL Draft picks?

We asked five NHL scouts and executives to rank the last nine No. 1 picks in the NHL Draft and Connor Bedard.

www.google.com

I think it's a very fair article and the scouts polled were split between Bedard and Matthews being 2nd best, with McDavid being a clear cut above for those that don't have a subscription.

They said Bedard is not generational and considered him a Patrick Kane level prospect.

The article said closer to Kane than to McDavid, not Kane level. The article does have Bedard and Matthews very close with Bedard slightly ahead based on the scouts' poll. I do agree with the general point though and they obviously don't consider him "generational" as a prospect.

 

[TLEH]

Its an easy line to walk. If he isn't a generational player, then you can spout how you were lower on Bedard than everyone else and you were clearly right about all his flaws. If he is generational its easy to backtrack and say well I did think he was amazing just wasn't sure what level!

 

[Mjul Qvist]

Well it doesn´t matter what anyone thinks. Time will tell how good he is going to be. Right now everyone is as much right or wrong as anyone.

 

[Fatass]

Personally I see Dionne when watching Bedard. Great, with the pick, in smaller areas. Straight line speed isn’t where he stands out. Close to 1800 career points. Don’t know if that’s generational, but it’s pretty damned good.

 

[Corso]

Personally I see Dionne when watching Bedard. Great, with the pick, in smaller areas. Straight line speed isn’t where he stands out. Close to 1800 career points. Don’t know if that’s generational, but it’s pretty damned good.

You know I said the same thing over a year ago.....he reminds sooooo much of Dionne...an offensive wizard who could make plays out of nothing with a super high compete level. Yeah, maybe not generational (or maybe so) but Chicago would be over the moon if they have the next Dionne in their hands as should any fan of the NHL