Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks and Connor Bedard of the Chicago Blackhawks are two of the best young centers in the entire NHL. With that status, they are in a similar stage of their respective careers – bright spots on a weak and young team.
But beyond the parallelism between them, is there a way to decipher who could have a better campaign for this upcoming season in terms of their production?
Last season, Celebrini and Bedard ended the year with similar numbers. The Sharks center scored 25 goals and 63 points in 70 games, while the Blackhawks center recorded 23 goals and 67 points in 82 games.
Even going into the 2025-26 season, the similarities don’t end there. Point projections, as well as season expectations, nearly line up perfectly for the two young stars from North Vancouver.
For one, they’ll be pushing to be in the conversation for Team Canada at the 2026 Olympics in February, even as the 13th forward.
In addition, sportsbook BetMGM has a very narrow gap between Celebrini and Bedard. Celebrini’s benchmark for points on BetMGM is 69.5 at 1.83 odds to hit the over (-120), and 29.5 goals at 1.87 odds (-115), also to hit the over.
Bedard’s point benchmark is 72.5 points, with his goals benchmark matching Celebrini’s at 29.5. The odds for Bedard to hit the over in both those categories are at 1.87 odds (-115).
With Celebrini going into his sophomore year, he’s on track to outperform Bedard in comparison to his second season from this past year.
Bedard experienced a bit of a slump, only registering six more points than in his rookie season, despite playing 14 more games. If Celebrini continues his form, he’ll be on pace to reach the 70-point mark, and that’s what The Hockey News’ Yearbook and Fantasy Guide predicts.
THN has projected Celebrini to hit 70 points on the nose, recording 28 goals and 42 assists. That would result in a slight improvement in the major scoring categories.
But for Bedard, regardless of his sophomore slump last year, they have the 20-year-old reaching 82 points, scoring 31 goals and 51 assists. They are predicting a big jump in production for Chicago’s star.
Following another year of experience in the NHL and an extra year over Celebrini, it should be expected for Bedard to finish the season with more goals and points.
With that, Bedard is yet to sign a contract extension. Going into the final year of his entry-level contract, he’s been eligible to ink a new deal since July 1. The uncertainty of his next contract could spark an offensive explosion in a contract year.
Even from a team perspective, the Blackhawks have another year of developing and rebuilding in their pocket, which should ultimately lead to a more competitive season.
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