Blackhawks phenom Connor Bedard breaks silence on ‘overwhelming’ 1st NHL season

Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews became the lynchpins for the Blackhawks en route to three Stanley Cup titles. While Chicago is still a long way off from being a playoff team again, Bedard is clearly capable of leading the way. At numerous times throughout the season, he scored some ridiculous goals, including a Michigan-style goal prior to Christmas against the St. Louis Blues. The Great One himself, Wayne Gretzky, was in attendance and admitted even he couldn’t score one like that:

“He’s been better than we probably anticipated,” Gretzky said on the Blues broadcast. “But I couldn’t do what he did tonight. This wasn’t in my repertoire.”

Connor Bedard revealed when he arrived in the Windy City, he felt pretty alone. But after a full season, the North Vancouver, BC native feels comfortable after forming everlasting relationships with his teammates:

“When I got here, I really didn’t know anyone, outside of camps or whatnot,” Bedard said. “Now they’re like my brothers.”

Veteran Nick Foligno has become a close friend of Bedard’s and somewhat of a father figure to the 18-year-old. He’s been really impressed with how Bedard has dealt with all the pressure and hype:

“Wiser and more mature than you’d probably expect — but also kind of expected with everything he’s had to deal with,” Foligno said. ” I know he has to put his guard up in certain aspects … But around us, he’s really able to be himself, let his guard down, laugh, and you can tell he’s most comfortable in that locker room environment with the guys.”

The Blackhawks will finish with one of the worst records in the NHL and have a lot of work to do moving forward. That being said, fans should be extremely pleased they have Bedard around for the foreseeable future and the best is surely yet to come. As he matures and packs on more muscle, the superstar is only going to become more of a force and potentially the face of the league with time.