The Chicago Blackhawks were awarded the number one overall pick after another very upsetting season. The NHL awards the picks for each team through a lottery system rooted in the team’s performance from the prior season. The Blackhawks still have their first-round pick after not trading it from the season’s prior look to add a new piece of firepower to their franchise to try and steer the ship in the right direction, with an 11.5% chance to get the top pick behind San Jose’s 14.5% odds and Anahemeim’s 18.5% chance to get the pick.
Connor Bedard
The clearcut number one overall prospect in this year’s draft is young 18-year-old phenom Conor Bedard. He boasted unheard of numbers in the minor leagues having 143 points (71 goals and 72 assists) with his most recent year under the Regina Pats out of Saskatchewan, Canada. The Chicago Blackhawks having won the first overall pick selected Connor Bedard first overall in the 2023 NHL Lottery Draft. He’s already performing having 24 points (12 goals and 12 assists) in the highest level of hockey in the world through 28 games. Bedard is the clear face of the program, and has already received an unimaginable amount of media attention and has been considered to be the future winner of the Calder Trophy, awarded to the best rookie in the NHL.
Bedard scored his first NHL goal on October 11th, 2023, the day following his first NHL point (an assist) just the night prior. With that goal, Bedard became the third youngest player in Blackhawks History to score his first NHL goal. He’s quickly becoming someone many teams are scared to play with his electric handles and ungodly quick shot release. He’s going to be someone who tears up the league for years to come, and just hopefully gets some stanley cups out of it as well.
Accolades
As for some of his history, Bedard already has a ton of accolades under his belt. He led all players in the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Championship with 23 points (9 goals and 14 assists) through seven games and was named the top player, MVP, and helped Canada secure their second straight gold medal. He has also won Canadian Hockey League Top Prospect, Top Scorer, and the David Branch Player of the Year award after his outstanding performance in the WHL with the Regina Pats. His 143 points came on 360 shots, and he averaged over 2.5 points per game with his goals per game being 1.24 through 57 regular season games. Bedard even recorded 20 (10 goals and 10 assists) points in seven playoff games.