Connor Bedard's early career with the Blackhawks compares well with other NHL stars

Connor Bedard

After the Blackhawks won the NHL Draft lottery in 2023, it became apparent that Connor Bedard was to be their next savior. The generational talent was compared to Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, and Nathan MacKinnon, with Bedard's arrival in the NHL seen as the next wave of superstars. With the tremendous amount of pressure and expectations placed upon him, Bedard has produced at the highest level.

Like many first-overall picks of recent years, Bedard has missed some time due to injuries (jaw and shoulder). However, there has been a narrative painted around Bedard that he has become injury-prone, especially after the shoulder injury that he sustained this offseason. It will come as a surprise to many people that Bedard has played more games in the first three seasons of his career than Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon, and Jack Hughes. All of these players play the center position and have been compared to Bedard in some capacity.

As a first overall pick, Bedard has not been surrounded by talent to begin his career. That fact makes it even more impressive that he has continued to succeed and rack up points by elevating players around him (e.g., Ryan Donato). Last year, Bedard's game took off as he took the next step towards being a top player in the league. He was in the top five in points before his injury and still ended at more than a point per game.

Bedard	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Year 1	68	22	39	61
Year 2	82	23	44	67
Year 3	69	30	45	75
Total	219	75	128	203

Sidney Crosby

Connor Bedard began his career by taking a faceoff against his childhood hockey hero, Sidney Crosby. Like Bedard, Crosby was highly touted exiting juniors. He began his historic career by scoring the fifth-most points out of any rookie in NHL history with little talent surrounding him as the Penguins finished last in the Eastern Conference. Evgeni Malkin joined Crosby in his second year, and Crosby would lead the league in points as a result. He would then injure his ankle in his third season, missing 29 games yet still ending with 72 points.

Crosby	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Year 1	81	39	63	102
Year 2	79	36	84	120
Year 3	53	24	48	72
Total	213	99	195	294

Nathan MacKinnon

Unlike Bedard and Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon was surrounded by talent after being drafted to the Colorado Avalanche in 2013. MacKinnon played alongside Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, Ryan O'Reilly, and Paul Stastny in his rookie year. Even with this talent surrounding him, MacKinnon was not able to carry sustained success until his fifth year in the league. Bedard finished with 50 more points than MacKinnon after the first three seasons of their career.

MacKinnon	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Year 1	82	24	39	63
Year 2	64	14	24	38
Year 3	72	21	31	52
Total	218	59	94	153

Connor McDavid

McDavid had a similar situation entering the league as MacKinnon, where they had a skillful supporting cast in Edmonton. Taylor Hall, Leon Draisaitl, Jordan Eberle, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins assisted McDavid to a point-per-game pace until a broken collarbone ended his season. He was able to play every game the next two seasons while scoring 100 points or more. By the end of his career, McDavid may be the best to ever put on a pair of skates, and he truly is a one-of-one player.

McDavid	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Year 1	45	16	32	48
Year 2	82	30	70	100
Year 3	82	41	67	108
Total	209	87	169	256

Auston Matthews

Statistically speaking, Auston Matthews may be the closest comparison to Connor Bedard that we will find among first-overall picks. Matthews finished his first three seasons with seven fewer games and two more points than Bedard. Unlike Bedard, Matthews was surrounded by young talent playing in the NHL. James van Riemsdyk, Nazem Kadri, William Nylander, and Mitch Marner were all part of this Leafs team. Toronto even made the playoffs in Matthews' first three seasons; however, as we all know, they never made it very far (sorry, Toronto).

Matthews	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Year 1	82	40	29	69
Year 2	62	34	29	63
Year 3	68	37	36	73
Total	212	111	94	205

Jack Hughes

The hero of the 2026 Olympic USA Team might be the center who struggled the most upon entering the league out of this group of players. Hughes missed time with injuries in the first three seasons, and that has unfortunately followed him for his entire career. He has only played more than 63 games once in his career. Hughes possesses all of the skill in the world, but his availability has been a big concern.

Hughes	Games Played	Goals	Assists	Points
Year 1	61	7	14	21
Year 2	56	11	20	31
Year 3	49	26	30	56
Total	166	44	64	108

Bedard has unfairly received a good amount of negative scrutiny from the national media, along with the clowns on social media. However, a deeper look into the statistics will show that he is comparable to some of the biggest stars in the league, and that is without the strong supporting cast that many of these players enjoyed throughout their young careers. With the new additions to the team this year, along with the top prospect's arrival, the best is yet to come for Bedard.

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