Playing in the 4 Nations Face-Off would have made Connor Bedard a better player

Blackhawks fans, don’t worry. Connor Bedard will earn a spot in international play, whether it’s the Olympics, the 4 Nations Face-Off, the World Cup of Hockey, or the IIHF Worlds. He’ll be ready and raring to go when his number is called, and that could have been the case this year. 

But alas, it wasn’t, as his numbers just weren’t there, which led to media criticisms. To be real, Bedard is still figuring out how to play in the NHL, but putting him in a best-on-best tournament could have helped catapult his growth. 

No, he wouldn’t have made Team Canada any better, even if Vinnie Parise of The Hockey News makes a compelling case. Chances are, he probably would’ve mainly been a healthy scratch, but being around some of the NHL’s best players would’ve worked wonders for his game. 

Playing for Team Canada would’ve been great for Connor Bedard

Chances are, Bedard wouldn’t have heard his number called often, and he’d have been lucky to have gotten over 13 minutes per game. Still, watching the best-on-best up close and getting in for a game would’ve meant more experience playing against some of the best the league offers, especially if it meant seeing the U.S. twice. 

Following the 4 Nations, Bedard could’ve used the experience gained to his advantage, nullifying some key mistakes he made earlier in the year, and turning some of his weaknesses closer to strengths. No, Bedard wouldn’t have made leaps and bounds, but an experience like the 4 Nations would have only guaranteed positive effects. 

This also comes after Bedard has looked a lot better lately, as he now has 49 points in 55 games with 16 goals and a solid 12.3 shooting percentage to go with it. Yeah, his face-off win percentage is dismal, his defensive game is still growing, and I’d like to see more physical play, but all three aspects of his game would have pointed north to at least a small degree. 

Point-per-game pace wouldn’t have been out of the question

I’ll concede two things here: One, Connor Bedard finishing the season at a point per game isn’t out of the question, to begin with, and two, there’s no guarantee he’d have embarked on one had he been invited to and played a little in the 4 Nations. 

Still, Bedard’s chances of finishing the year at a point-per-game level would’ve increased, based on the sheer skill level and talent he’d have found himself up against. Returning to Chicago, the game would have slowed down for Bedard. That’s when you would have seen sheer improvement from where he was at earlier in the season until now, or better yet, the end of the year. 

My projection is that Bedard will put up one point per game through these final 27 contests, but he’ll finish just shy of a point per overall. That would give him 76 points on the year. Should he keep up the same pace for goals, he’d end up with about 24, which isn’t a bad number.