Bedard Proving He Can Be Next NHL Star

Western Hockey League junior star Connor Bedard showed the hockey world Monday why this is a good time to be a bad NHL team.

Bedard, 17, put on a dazzling stickhandling exhibition, weaving through three opponents, to score an overtime goal to lift Canada to a 4-3 win over Slovakia in the quarterfinals of the World Junior Championships in Moncton, New Brunswick. That puts Canada into the semifinals against USA Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.

The magical, memorable goal adds another layer of excitement to the anticipation of Bedard becoming the NHL’s No. 1 draft pick next summer.

NHL Network analyst Ken Daneyko said Bedard is “as dynamic as any player we’ve seen” at the World Junior Championships.

That’s a meaningful statement because Wayne Gretzky, Connor McDavid, Sidney Crosby and Eric Lindros are among those who have played at the WJC.

The overtime tally was Bedard’s second goal of the game. Earlier, he netted one that made him the highest-scoring Canadian in WJC history. Bedard passed Jordan Eberle’s career goal mark of 14 and Eric Lindros’ record of 31 points. The Lindros record had stood since 1992.

Bedard has 21 points in five games for Canada in this tournament. That means he has been involved in 66.3% of Canada’s 33 goals. Before coming to the WJC, he put up 64 points in 28 games for the Regina Pats.

That’s why fans of weak NHL teams are following draft lottery odds on a daily basis. Based on having the league’s worst record, the Chicago Blackhawks own a 25.5% chance of winning the Bedard Sweepstakes.

Other teams in the hunt: Anaheim Ducks (13.5%), Columbus Blue Jackets (11.5%), San Jose Sharks (9.5%), Arizona Coyotes (8.5%) and Montreal Canadiens (7.5%). Because the lottery winner can only move up 10 spots, the 11 worst teams have a shot at Bedard.

⏱ It went down to the final seconds but the Bruins' won 2-1 yesterday in Fenway. In a nutshell: Linus Ullmark made 26 saves, Jake DeBrusk scored two third period goals, and Evgeni Malkin couldn't beat the final buzzer to force overtime. The Bruins home point streak now sits at 22 games (19-0-3) whereas the Pens lost their 5th straight.

⭐️ Forsberg, Karlsson, Raanta named NHL's three stars of the week. Filip Forsberg led the NHL with five goals and tied the league lead with seven points last week in just three games. Erik Karlsson collected seven assists in four games while extending his point streak to 13 games. And Antti Raanta went 3-0-0, posted two shutouts, a .944 save percentage, and 1.30 goals-against-average last week as the 'Canes continue their 17-game point streak.

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