NHL club Chicago Blackhawks hit the jackpot when it got the chance to book what was considered an exceptional super-promise by Connor Bedard17, to his team at next summer’s booking event.
There was a frenzy in Chicago from the first round of reservations, and for example Blackhawks season tickets were sold for 2.5 million dollars after the first reservation was secured.
The media drumming has been perhaps louder than for any other future NHL player in the past.
Urheilu’s ice hockey expert Ismo Lehkonen thinks that already Bedard’s financial importance for Chicago is huge. Media coverage and fan product sales take a big leap.
– Chicago is a tough place in terms of its market area, which is on display quite a lot. At this point, the player will already sell at an absurd level.
Ripening takes time
Bedard has been talked about as a generational talent, the likes of which are rarely seen. He’s been talked about Connor McDavid’s and Sidney Crosby like a superstar.
According to Lehkonen, it is not yet possible to say what kind of scorer Bedard will develop in the NHL, although he will certainly be a tough player.
For example, since he was young, Crosby has led the Pittsburgh Penguins to the playoffs year after year.
– That’s a tough Savotta boy. I’d say let Bedard be himself and create a career like himself. It always bothers me a little that people compare whether it’s that style or this style. Personally, I like to see these types of players enter the NHL map because it always gives hope to certain types of players in the younger division.
Lehkonen reminds that it takes a couple of years to mature from the junior leagues to the men’s games, even if the power points are already picked up in the opening season. Bedard is quite small and has room for improvement in his skating power.
In the NHL, comprehensive playing and work is also required in the defensive direction.
– In the junior leagues, Bedard didn’t have to learn a lot of defensive playing. How to defend in a playoff game, in what way in the middle area and how to take care of things to the last in your own area.
NHL tempo hockey is demanding and the level of the game has risen.
– All teams have a row full of mature, 190-centimeter guys. The defensive lines of the top teams are really big, so it will certainly take a long time to learn.
– Personally, I would give him a lot of time and follow in moderation. However, people are impatient. He gets into quite a mess as soon as we start playing. He will be a good player for sure, but being able to produce results like Crosby, McDavid or Austin Matthewsyes it just lasts.
Skilled in shooting and passing
What kind of player is it really?
Bedard has played three seasons in the Canadian Junior WHL for the Regina Pats. In the most recent season, he forged a wild score of 71+72=143 in a total of 57 regular season games. At the World Junior Championships at the turn of the year, Bedard led Canada to the world championship and scored 9+14=23 points in seven matches.
The 178-centimeter Canadian stands out especially in the puck attack game. Lehkonen emphasizes Bedard’s ability to shoot.
– The powers in the direction of attack are at an absurdly high level. He can shoot from different positions and styles very quickly, depending on the situation.
Tomi Lämsa got to witness Bedard’s playing from a close distance as the head coach of the Young Lions at the turn of the year in the under-20 World Championships.
In addition to Bedard’s shot, Lämsä praises his passing skills. Bedard is able to keep the launch threat on until the end and, if necessary, pass versatilely and accurately.
– He recognizes space and time and knows how to observe and anticipate the game and the players. Game understanding crowns a player’s skills, Lämsä estimates.
The beginning of a new dynasty?
Lehkonen thinks that Bedard will play the early years in Chicago as a winger.
The Blackhawks celebrated the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015 with a team whose body was assembled in peace and composure. The club made several top acquisitions, such as Patrick Kane number one booking in 2007 and by Jonathan Toews triple booking a year earlier.
Chicago has had a tough time in recent years: since 2018, it has only made the playoffs once, and even then, the road rose in the first round. Kane and Toews will no longer represent the club in the upcoming season.
The team would now have the opportunity to build a new rise again in the long term.
– The Chicago dynasty was once built little by little. I could see that since they have done it before, with such moderate construction it can be successful. It is good to bring free agent players to the side as well. I would say that with this reservation, Chicago has good times ahead, says Lehkonen.