Is Bedard for real?
Four years ago, someone uploaded a highlight reel to YouTube of then-14-year-old Connor Bedard, already then a potential NHL prospect, lighting it up at a spring tournament in British Columbia for the Vancouver Vipers. Commenters mulled his hockey IQ. Was he really that good? “I know his passing may be an issue,” one wrote after watching Bedard score multiple times. “But from this video, a lot of options weren’t properly set up. I’d say he’s experienced enough to see some people just shouldn’t touch the puck.” It’s worth mentioning that among Bedard’s teammates were two players also drafted to the NHL in 2023: Zach Benson (Buffalo Sabres) and Andrew Cristall (Washington Capitals) – that is, guys who should definitely touch the puck. He had someone to pass it to. He just didn’t need to.
But that was spring league. This is the NHL.
While the September prospects games and preseason tilts aren’t necessarily a sign of all that’s to come for any team, it seems clear that Bedard belongs among the best, though anyone looking for a Connor McDavid clone will be disappointed. Where McDavid often uses his intense speed and puck control to gain the zone and befuddle defense and goalies alike, Bedard is slightly more calculating on the offensive – more like Mitch Marner. He tends to circle like a shark, reading the game until he sees a moment to pounce with a quick pass or, using as much stick flex as possible, a shot that seems to defy physics. Check out, for example, his first goal against the St Louis Blues’ prospects last month:
🎩🎩🎩 BEDARD HAT TRICK 🎩🎩🎩
— NHL (@NHL) September 17, 2023
Connor Bedard put on a show at the prospect showcase in Saint Paul! 😤
(🎥: @NHLBlackhawks) pic.twitter.com/g6dHQpdqPG
How did that puck get there? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
A couple weeks later in the preseason against Detroit he pulled off this dangle on his way to the net – which today’s naysayers noted didn’t end with a goal.
Oh my goodness, Connor Bedard. 😳 pic.twitter.com/1Dsa9AjQ5l
— NHL (@NHL) October 2, 2023
Even if he didn’t light the lamp that time, the predictions for Bedard’s season goal tally are skewing high. One sportsbook puts the over-under at 32.5. Paul Bissonette thinks it’ll be 28. Auston Matthews figures – jokingly – that Bedard could get six in his first game. Others think it might be closer to 40. Perhaps more important to Chicago fans than how many goals Bedard gets is whether he can help carry the team out of the league’s basement. To help him do that, the Blackhawks have brought in veterans like Nick Foligno and Corey Perry, as well as Taylor Hall to, presumably, help Bedard on that scoring sheet.
Bedard’s first official preseason goal for Chicago did come eventually. With just over a minute left in the third period against Detroit on October 3, the Blackhawks were on the power play. Bedard sank the winner – on an empty net.
Connor Bedard’s first NHL preseason goal is an empty-netter. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/dPCAka4nGy
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) October 4, 2023
“I don’t know if he even counts those,” Chicago coach Luke Richardson said after the game. “But I count them.” So will everyone else.
Culture war avoidance
Over the summer, the NHL announced that it’s eliminated its recent – and more recently controversial – tradition of allowing players to wear special warmup jerseys on the ice during theme nights, like those for breast cancer awareness, military appreciation, or Pride inclusivity. This summer commissioner Gary Bettman called the furore over the Pride jerseys last season – when multiple players refused to wear them based on personal religious beliefs – “a distraction from really the essence of what the purpose of these nights are”. Defending values is indeed difficult sometimes. There are fewer questions when you simply pretend you don’t have any values at all.
McDavid called the league’s decision “disappointing”, and added that in Edmonton, anyway, “we strongly feel hockey is for everyone, and that includes the Pride nights.” Elsewhere, Alex Ovechkin reportedly told a Russian outlet in September that he was happy the NHL didn’t penalize the players who refused to wear the Pride jerseys: “I’m glad the NHL stopped giving into political pressure. The world needs more of this. What else can I say? Well done. It should be like that everywhere.”
Oilers atop the West
But for the Vegas Golden Knights, it’s probable that the Edmonton Oilers would have hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2023. They remain the strongest candidate outside Carolina to do it this year, if you take stock in more than one pre-season analyses. All of the Oilers’ strengths remain – McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Darnell Nurse, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. And they’ve shored-up defenceman Evan Bouchard, directing him to play with “urgency”. The biggest questions are in goal. Jack Campbell played only 36 games last season with a middling .888 save percentage. Will they get a full, better season out of him? It was up to Stuart Skinner to save the season (for which he received a Calder trophy nomination) – should he be the No 1? Still, assuming the goaltending is the same or better and the Oilers power play remains ridiculously good, they have a strong chance to see the final. And if not now, when?
Pressure on the Oilers in the West will be come mostly from Vegas, Calgary, Dallas and Colorado – all likely to make the playoffs and all capable of disrupting Edmonton’s game. Dallas are inching closer to the Cup, only losing to Vegas in the West final last year. Colorado, even without captain Gabriel Landeskog for the entire regular season, still boasts Nathan MacKinnon and Miko Rantanen up front and the dangerous Cale Makar–Devon Toews duo on defence. Calgary has a lot to prove after a bad 2022-23, and under new management and coaching could finally show that the on-ice talent matches what’s on paper.
A turbulent Atlantic
The Atlantic is a division in transition. The Boston Bruins have lost key parts, including Patrice Bergeron (retired), David Krejci (retired), Taylor Hall (Chicago), and Tyler Bertuzzi (Toronto), leaving them with David Pastrnak, new captain Brad Marchand, Charlie McAvoy, and one of the strongest goaltending tandems in hockey. Nevertheless, the vibes have shifted.
It’s a similar story in Tampa Bay, where the once-mighty Lightning, also coming off a first-round playoff exit, still boast strong assets like Andrei Vasilevskiy, Victor Hedman and Brayden Point, but there’s a sense of fading glory. The team also still hasn’t offered its captain, Steve Stamkos – who’s entering the final year of his contract – an extension. As for Florida, who knows which team will return this year, the regular season Panthers or the playoff version?
Likeliest to step up are the Buffalo Sabres and the Ottawa Senators. The Sabres fell just short of the post-season last year, finishing one point behind Florida. Much of Buffalo’s success will hinge on its defensive depth (beyond Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power) and its rookie first-string goalie, Devon Levi. But if a team like the Panthers are wobbly, the Sabres could sneak into the playoffs – finally. Meanwhile the Senators have put Joonas Korpisalo between the pipes and added Vladimir Tarasenko up front. Don’t be surprised to see Ottawa make a push.
Must watch / Look away
Carolina Hurricanes A fascinating team in many respects, technically due to break through to the final, especially with a healthy Andrei Svechnikov. But the East is brutal and unpredictable (see 2022-23). The Hurricanes are as close to a lock as you get – but they’ve still got a long way to go.
New Jersey Devils The Devils are young, fast, and, thanks to last post-season, a little more road-tested for the long haul. But uneven net-minding may undermine the Devils in a tough Metro division that includes the ‘Canes, Rangers, Islanders and Penguins.
Philadelphia Flyers The Flyers gave season ticket-holders ‘free’ games in April as a form of apology for the team’s terrible season. The good news to start 2023-24 in Philly is that Sean Couturier is back. Otherwise, the only thing Flyers fans might have to look forward to this year is more free games.
San Jose Sharks For a time, California boasted some of the league’s strongest teams. No longer. San Jose will likely join Anaheim in NHL’s basement this year, having lost Erik Karlsson to Pittsburgh and not gained much otherwise. Look forward to a high draft pick!
Who wins?
The playoffs are notoriously unpredictable, but a Hurricanes-Oilers Cup Final rematch would be fun – and both teams deserve it.
