Connor Bedard leads all rookies in points, hitting 21 on the season
The Blackhawks beat the Anaheim Ducks 1-0 on Thursday. The lone goal was produced on a power play when Tyler Johnson passed to Connor Bedard who dumped the puck off to a trailing Philipp Kusharev. Kusharev then fires a one-timer into the back of the ducks net.
Philipp Kurashev buries his fifth goal of the season. Great play by Connor Bedard and Tyler Johnson. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/zL2UUDqGy0
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) December 8, 2023
Connor Bedard bests Leo Carlsson is their first matchup
Connor Bedard takes the first round in the battle of the top 2 2023 draftees. Leo Carlsson has shown flashes of his talent early this season, but he hasn’t produced at the same clip as Bedard.
Bedard currently leads the Blackhawks with 21 points. Carlsson has 13 points on the season, he is tied for 5th most points.
Remember, the Blackhawks are in a rebuild
The Blackhawks were never going to compete for a cup this year. Even with Connor Bedard producing offense at the level that he is, the team needs time to evolve.
Rebuilds take time, look at Detroit for example. They are further along in a rebuild of their own and are seeing some decent results early this season. The Red Wings are currently 14-7-4, which is nearly half of the wins they got in each of their last two seasons.
The Red Wings have not won 50 games since 2008-2009, that year they lost the Stanley Cup final. Since 2013 they have appeared in the postseason 3 times and were promptly bounced in the first round each time. Detroit has missed the playoffs for the last 8 seasons.
The Blackhawks just moved on from Patrick Kane (during) and Johnathan Towes (after) in the 2022-2023 season. Their departure officially signaled the end of an era. A three time Stanley Cup winning era. The teardown was last year, now the rebuild is officially on. Drafting Bedard was step one, next will be to construct a team around him.
Connor Bedard is showing early on in his career that he can run an offense. Not only can he carry a teams goal scoring load, but he can also be playmaker for his teammates exceptionally well too.
The Blackhawks have their center piece in Connor Bedard, now they have to find the other pieces to the puzzle. Some of which may already be on the roster, or in Rockford, or even still in college. The Blackhawks have access to a major pool of young and upcoming talent.
The Hawks need to let some of the young talent develop at the NHL level. To see who is worth keeping around and who should be moved. The Hawks have a once in a lifetime player on their hands, they can’t afford to mess around and waste him.
As long as everything goes to plan, over the next few seasons Bedard will be surrounded by players that compliment him. The race for Lord Stanley can then begin once again.
Patrick Kane was drafted in 2007 and three season later in 2010, the Blackhawks won their first Stanley Cup since 1961. A three seasons after a first overall pick, a cup was brought to Chicago. The front office will surely feel that pressure with the last Blackhawks era still fresh in the fans minds.
There really should be no pressure on this team to perform right now. Some consistency from the young players is what we should be looking for. As Davidson said at the beginning of the season, the name of the game is development.
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