Maybe someday, a young prodigy’s first game against Connor Bedard will be a storyline, as reporters ask the phenom how they’ll feel about facing one of the best of a prior generation.
For now, Bedard is the young prodigy. And in the Blackhawks’ 4-2 loss Sunday to the Capitals, the superstar veteran Bedard opposed for the first time was Washington captain Alex Ovechkin. Then on Tuesday, Bedard will line up against players a little closer to his age: Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Leon Draisatl.
“When the time comes, getting to play Ovechkin will be pretty special,” Bedard said Saturday. “Just growing up and watching him, it was always him and [Sidney] Crosby battling. And of course McDavid, what he’s done in the last eight years is obviously remarkable. He’s going to go down as one of the best players ever. Him and Draisatl of course, it’s pretty exciting.”
Unlike McDavid and Draisatl, Bedard and Ovechkin aren’t in the prime portions of their careers.
Bedard did have a pair of assists, including his third-period helper when his backhand cross-ice pass through the slot found Connor Murphy to cut the Hawks’ deficit to 4-2. Bedard also had the secondary assist on Philipp Kurashev’s second-period goal that gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead.
However, Bedard was beaten down the ice by Anthony Mantha for Washington’s equalizer and hasn’t scored a goal of his own since Dec. 2 as he navigates his rookie campaign.
Ovechkin, meanwhile, is at the other end of his career. In his visit to the United Center last December, Ovechkin had a hat trick to reach 800 career goals and seemed to be on his way to passing Wayne Gretzky’s league-record 894 goals. This time around, Ovechkin did collect an assist, but stayed stuck on five goals and looked like a shadow of his best self.
Even if it’s a star in his twilight like Ovechkin or dominant modern-day forces such as McDavid and Draisatl, Bedard doesn’t take the chance to play them for granted.
“Once you’re playing the game, it’s hockey and you can’t really be thinking about it too much,” Bedard said. “But before the game and going into a faceoff or something, it’s definitely pretty special. I feel pretty fortunate for those opportunities.”
The defeat ended the Hawks’ modest two-game winning streak and three-game point streak.