All season, we’ve been watching rookie phenom Connor Bedard like a hawk, monitoring his progress on a monthly basis with reports and check-ins. Those progress reports are simply a microcosm of the immense pressure the 18-year-old faced even before he was drafted.
Even with enormous expectations from day one, Bedard has met every one of them. He didn’t blow anyone’s minds in the month of April with four points in eight games. Still, as the Blackhawks’ season came to a close last week, so did one of the best rookie campaigns in franchise history.
Finishing the year with 61 points overall, Bedard finished seventh all-time in points by a rookie in Chicago, just behind household names like Jeremy Roenick and Darryl Sutter. Bedard’s historical success was also evident on a leaguewide scale. Even with a slow finish to the season, Bedard dominated the rookie statistical leaderboard, putting up 14 more points than the next-best youngster. That excellent mark becomes even more impressive when considering that Bedard missed 14 games in January and February due to a fractured jaw. Despite the lengthy stint off the ice, Bedard led rookies in shots on goal and rookie forwards in time on ice.
With Bedard’s season coming to a close, the rookie has one more item to check off his to-do list before closing the book on a tremendous first campaign: the Calder Trophy. While Bedard was always expected to win the award, which is given annually to the NHL’s top rookie, the race ended up being tightly contested all year.
Minnesota defenseman Brock Faber seemingly came out of nowhere this season, playing in all 82 games and emerging as one of the league’s premier young blueliners. As a great all-around player on both ends of the ice, Faber racked up 47 points while serving as a defensive mastermind. The 21-year-old rookie seemed to even pull ahead in the race while Bedard was out.
Minnesota fans argue that Bedard shouldn’t be the favorite because of his woeful plus-minus, which ranks second-worst in the entire league at -44. Still, the first-overall pick’s impact on Chicago can’t be overstated. He brought life to an offense devoid of any firepower whatsoever, igniting the United Center every time he touched the puck. While Bedard didn’t finish the season the way he hoped, he certainly made a huge impact on his team.
