Presented by Nationwide Insurance Agent Jeff Vukovich
Heading into last year's training camp, all eyes were on Chicago Blackhawks' No. 1 overall pick, Connor Bedard, as he prepared for his NHL campaign. The media attention carried into the regular season, creating a frenzy every time Bedard played in a new venue.
This year, Bedard enters his second NHL season feeling "a lot" more comfortable. He looked mentally refreshed heading into training camp.
"I didn’t do an interview for a couple of months, which was unbelievable," Bedard said with a smile. "I feel a lot more ready to come. The excitement was there last year, but I think I just feel more relaxed."
Bedard partly credited his quiet summer for allowing him to focus solely on training, unlike last year when his offseason was filled with commitments like the NHL Scouting Combine, Draft, and development camp.
"It was great, for sure," Bedard said. "Last year, like, it’s super cool, I don’t take any of it for granted, but it’s definitely a lot of stuff. It’s something you always want and it’s great, but once it’s done, you don’t want to do it again. It was a good summer."
The Blackhawks are eager to see what Bedard can do in his sophomore season, now that he’s had a full offseason to train and gain familiarity with the NHL.
"I'm sure that'll be a nice thing for him, to have a full offseason where he was just training and focusing on getting ready for the season," Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson said. "But there's also comfort in entering your second camp where you know what you're walking into. You've been around the facility, you know what training camp is like, there's a lot fewer questions that he'll be wondering or having to answer heading into the year.
"Probably now that he's coming into his second year, a lot less of that hoopla he had to go through on that initial road trip — just call it what it is, it's not normal, what he had to go through last year. I'm sure there's comfort in knowing what he's getting into in the NHL, he knows the level of play, he's been through a year, just much more relaxed coming into his second camp. I'm excited to see how he does.
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"It's so early, and as soon as there's hockey on the ice, you want to start evaluating, and we're not even through Day 2, but just watching him in the skates, I think he looks fantastic. Excited to see how he does as we enter the season."
Bedard’s offensive potential remains sky-high. If he stays healthy, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him flirt with 40 goals and 90 points this season. The Blackhawks also believe there’s room for him to grow defensively.
"I think it's just growing that 200-foot game and I'm sure from his standpoint he probably wants to up his offensive output as well," Davidson said. "But I'm excited to see him with some new linemates and really taking that step that now he understands the league and being able to impact the game on both sides of the puck and also give us a few more memorable moments on the offensive side of things."
A key focus for Bedard this summer was improving his speed. Although it’s early in camp, he’s already feeling the difference.
"I feel good," Bedard said. "I should, I was training for a while; we all were. I think everyone does. The pace of the skates has been good. I’m feeling pretty good. In the gym and on the ice, [I] just [tried] to put myself in as much game situations as I can. Coming here, I’m ready to do that."
When asked about his personal expectations for the season, Bedard smiled and replied: "I’d never tell you, but I have goals in my head for sure."
