Is Bedard more McDavid or Drai/Matthews/Mackinnon level talent?

[Kranix]

Can you show some numbers to back up your claims.

I'm talking about Daigle there.

 

[6ix]

He’s touted as generational so I’ll vote closer to McDavid. But his game is much different than Mcdavids. McDavids shot couldn’t hold a jock strap to Bedards at the same age, and vice versa for speed where Bedard’s speed couldn’t hold a jockstrap to McDavid at that age.

 

[Mack a doodle doo]

Bing

I honestly think Bedard will be a great player, but I don't see what some of posters see, and I've watched a ton of Bedard. He's way, way below a McDavid / Crosby level for me, but we have posters here that act like he's near that level, he's not.


I beg to differ, McDavid losing a step is still a 120-130 point player, the way he thinks the game is completely different. He decided to win the rocket instead of dishing more, he's that great, he does what he wants on the ice. His skating his certainly tiers above the rest but it's not why he's the best in the world.

Bingo! The biggest reason for McDavid‘s dominance is actually not his fast twitch muscle stuff(of which he does still havave an advantage over most of the NHL/His peers, obviously sports like basketball and football have a higher concentration of superior fast twitch muscle athletes),

The reason that Bedard or nobody else in the for seeable future will match McDavid is because low-key his biggest asset is his brain. McDavid obviously has a psychopathic work ethic that he uses to refine his techniques and skills(like Crosby has previously), and I can actually see Bedard as the type of guy that can match that level of intense obsessive training which will likely make him a top two or three player in the league,….

But what nobody is going to match McDavid in is that brain power, there’s a few vids on YouTube about some type of fancy sports Science Facility that measures brain scans of elite professional athletes across all sports and the fact that the professionals that run these tests consistently rave that McDavid’s brain scans(when he’s doing his thing carrying the puck with speed) are off the charts compared to all other elite athletes they test, should be the big indicator of why we’re all witnessing something very special with McDavid that isn’t likely to come along again anytime soon,.. it really should be no surprise that McDavid has some superior brain power compared to most of his peers, if I remember correctly he won scholastic player of the year all while being the most hyped hockey prospect since Crosby. McDavid also obviously likely has some really great neurological genetics on account of the fact that his twin brother is a doctor.

 

[Juxta Position]

He's obviously a McDavid-tier prospect/talent. Has one of the best shots I've ever seen, incredible hockey IQ and great playmaking skills. I've never seen Matthews/Mackinnon/Draisaitl dominate the WJC, regular season and playoffs at the level Bedard did this year. People keep mentioning him not having McDavid's skating abilities but neither did Crosby and he was still a generational player before injuries ate away at his prime.

Draisaitl absolutely dominated the Memorial Cup tournament to the degree that he won the Mem Cup MVP on the losing team. He was an absolute force in that tournament.

 

[blundluntman]

Draisaitl absolutely dominated the Memorial Cup tournament to the degree that he won the Mem Cup MVP on the losing team. He was an absolute force in that tournament.

Yeah Draisaitl definitely had a great performance. I do think Bedard averaging 3 ppg vs Draisaitl's 2ppg is a bit more impressive tho. Especially when you consider he was basically 2 years younger.

 

[Ezekial]

I've always seen Bedard as top 10 player in the league potential, not best player in the league potential.

At this point I think people are rating him a little high on current NHL player lists and stuff. He's an incredible prospect, but I don't think he's guaranteed to be a top 10 player. Pretty dang likely though, his bust potential seems extremely low based on the way he's approached the game his whole life.

 

[daver]

Bing

Bingo! The biggest reason for McDavid‘s dominance is actually not his fast twitch muscle stuff(of which he does still havave an advantage over most of the NHL/His peers, obviously sports like basketball and football have a higher concentration of superior fast twitch muscle athletes),

The reason that Bedard or nobody else in the for seeable future will match McDavid is because low-key his biggest asset is his brain. McDavid obviously has a psychopathic work ethic that he uses to refine his techniques and skills(like Crosby has previously), and I can actually see Bedard as the type of guy that can match that level of intense obsessive training which will likely make him a top two or three player in the league,….

But what nobody is going to match McDavid in is that brain power, there’s a few vids on YouTube about some type of fancy sports Science Facility that measures brain scans of elite professional athletes across all sports and the fact that the professionals that run these tests consistently rave that McDavid’s brain scans(when he’s doing his thing carrying the puck with speed) are off the charts compared to all other elite athletes they test, should be the big indicator of why we’re all witnessing something very special with McDavid that isn’t likely to come along again anytime soon,.. it really should be no surprise that McDavid has some superior brain power compared to most of his peers, if I remember correctly he won scholastic player of the year all while being the most hyped hockey prospect since Crosby. McDavid also obviously likely has some really great neurological genetics on account of the fact that his twin brother is a doctor.

There's brain power then there's hockey IQ. I like Bedard's hockey IQ better.

 

[Despote]

I personally don't see McDavid upside.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Well above Mack/Leon tier but just below McDavid.


If McDavids best year ever is ~155 points, I expect Bedards best to be ~140

 

[centipede2233]

All I will say, it’s given me a reason to follow Blackhawks games for the first time in my life!

 

[Connor McConnor]

Size and speed matter.. a lot. Add in better skills you have someone clearly a tier above.

That said, Bedard has such other elite traits, I think he should be in a tier of his own in between the options.

 

[pi314]

Well above Mack/Leon tier but just below McDavid.


If McDavids best year ever is ~155 points, I expect Bedards best to be ~140

You must be pretty young then.

Wasn’t long ago they were winning 3 championships.

Edit: Quoted the wrong post and don't see the one I was referring to. Some guy said it's the first time the Blackhawks were interesting.

 

[Pavels Dog]

I beg to differ, McDavid losing a step is still a 120-130 point player, the way he thinks the game is completely different. He decided to win the rocket instead of dishing more, he's that great, he does what he wants on the ice. His skating his certainly tiers above the rest but it's not why he's the best in the world.

Well you're saying the same thing as me. The "non-McDavid tier" of the poll is a tier with guys who can score 120-130 points.

 

[haulinbass]

I do not see him at McDavid level... I don't think he does anything as well as McDavid. Do some of you people not at all realize how good McDavid is?

Bedard plays his game much more in the mix than McDacid who creates seperation nearly all the time. Bedard will prevail fine at the NHL level, but his size isn't going to do his style of game any favors against NHL players.

He will be great and he will be exciting to watch, but just can't see him performing at McDavid level.

 

[ricky0034]

Because I refuse to eat crow on HF

you're doing it wrong, you're supposed to pick a side and if you're wrong just pretend you never said it

maybe throw in a AINEC or something

 

[Tufted Titmouse]

I'd say he's most like Crosby with better goal scoring ability no?

Spoken like someone who watched neither of them as prospects.

 

[TheImpatientPanther]

Spoken like someone who watched neither of them as prospects.

OK Bobby Mac

 

[daver]

Size and speed matter.. a lot. Add in better skills you have someone clearly a tier above.

That said, Bedard has such other elite traits, I think he should be in a tier of his own in between the options.

Except when they don't. Kane, Kucherov, Gaudreau etc..

Bedard was a bit bigger than Kane (arguably closer to Crosby than Kane) at his draft and dominated more than Kane did at a slightly younger age. No reason to expect his dominance in the CHL will not translate as Kane's did but at a higher level.

 

[Toby91ca]

So, my answer is I really have no idea how he'll do in the NHL. I'll be honest in that I don't tend to watch a lot of prospects. I do remember watching a lot of Crosby, but that was simply because there was no NHL during the 2004/05 year....even then, I didn't watch a ton. Most of the the prospects I see are via the WJC, which is useful, but at the end of the day, it's just one tournament, it's also really a 19 year old's tournament, so you don't always see someone like Crosby or McDavid take a huge role there. What Bedard did this past year at the WJC was quite unique in that regard.

All I can say is that his stat in junior are pretty close to comparable to Crosby and McDavid, if not more impressive than McDavid. I'm not looking at comparing the numbers of the 3 as they all played different years in different leagues, but in terms of dominance over the competition, I think Bedard was close to Crosby and better than McDavid.

Below, for each of their draft years (keep in mind, McDavid benefited from this being his 3rd full year and Jan birthday)....Crosby only had 2 years and Bedard did play 15 games as a 15 year old. This is a small thing, but is does have a bit of an impact.

Crosby - led league 168 pts, #2 had 116pts, 2.71ppg vs. #2 at 1.68ppg.
McDavid - 3rd in scoring at 120pts (but missed games), 2.55ppg vs. #2 at 2.00ppg
Bedard - led league 143 pts, #2 had 107pts, 2.51ppg vs. #2 at 1.57ppg.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

Except when they don't. Kane, Kucherov, Gaudreau etc..

Bedard was a bit bigger than Kane (arguably closer to Crosby than Kane) at his draft and dominated more than Kane did at a slightly younger age. No reason to expect his dominance in the CHL will not translate as Kane's did but at a higher level.

no he's not, he's 5' 9.75" inches tall, while Kane is 5'10"

"Too small": Connor Bedard's recorded height at 2023 NHL Combine has fans thinking top prospect should not be drafted at No.1

Connor Bedard, the talented Canadian junior ice hockey center and captain of the Regina Pats, measured in at 5'9.75" in height, NHL fans took to Twitter to express their opinions.

www.sportskeeda.com

his smaller size and less-than-elite speed has him a under McDavid/Crosby but above a guy like Patrick Kane

 

[summer tooth]

I'd say he's comparable to a young Jeff Skinner but possibly even more agile and faster.

 

[CallMeShaft]

I do not see him at McDavid level... I don't think he does anything as well as McDavid. Do some of you people not at all realize how good McDavid is?

Bedard plays his game much more in the mix than McDacid who creates seperation nearly all the time. Bedard will prevail fine at the NHL level, but his size isn't going to do his style of game any favors against NHL players.

He will be great and he will be exciting to watch, but just can't see him performing at McDavid level.

Bedard's shooting is absolutely better than McDavid's, let alone 18yo McDavid. You can argue that Bedard is worse in every other asset, but not that.

no he's not, he's 5' 9.75" inches tall, while Kane is 5'10"

"Too small": Connor Bedard's recorded height at 2023 NHL Combine has fans thinking top prospect should not be drafted at No.1

Connor Bedard, the talented Canadian junior ice hockey center and captain of the Regina Pats, measured in at 5'9.75" in height, NHL fans took to Twitter to express their opinions.

www.sportskeeda.com

his smaller size and less-than-elite speed has him a under McDavid/Crosby but above a guy like Patrick Kane

He's way thicker than draft Kane. He's at most a half inch shorter, and as thick as modern day Kane.

 

[x Tame Impala]

Hawks fan here, I’d be ecstatic if he was a Jack Hughes or higher level of player. It’s way too early to answer this question.

 

[shakes the clown]

All I will say, it’s given me a reason to follow Blackhawks games for the first time in my life!

you must be very young.

no he's not, he's 5' 9.75" inches tall, while Kane is 5'10"

"Too small": Connor Bedard's recorded height at 2023 NHL Combine has fans thinking top prospect should not be drafted at No.1

Connor Bedard, the talented Canadian junior ice hockey center and captain of the Regina Pats, measured in at 5'9.75" in height, NHL fans took to Twitter to express their opinions.

www.sportskeeda.com

his smaller size and less-than-elite speed has him a under McDavid/Crosby but above a guy like Patrick Kane

there's more to size than just height. Bedard is huge for his height and just led the combine in pull ups. He's a beast.

 

[Tralfamadore]

Somewhere in between.