Chicago Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard made his Hockey Night in Canada debut on Saturday night when the Blackhawks faced the Montreal Canadiens.
NHL insider Elliotte Friedman did a segment on Bedard that touched on a few topics including how Bedard got a Sidney Crosby signed stick when he was younger, his favorite player, favorite hockey moment growing up and how he studied and practiced Auston Matthews’ shot from Youtube.
As for which NHL player Bedard compares himself to?
Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov.
“Player he compares himself the most to (is) Kirill Kaprizov, who said this morning he was flattered — but understood the comparison (because of) the way they skate, their hips (and) the way they position their feet. Kaprizov sees it in Bedard and himself,” Friedman said.
Bedard also made the comparison in an interview in June with Sportsnet’s Colby Armstrong ahead of the 2023 NHL Draft this summer, where the Blackhawks selected Bedard first overall after his rise to being the NHL’s latest generational prospect. Few prospects have had the type of hype that Bedard has.
Kaprizov has gained a reputation as an offensive threat both as a playmaker and scorer, but his skating ability has garnered a lot of attention — especially his edge work — since his arrival to hockey’s biggest stage.
While Kaprizov is a winger and Bedard is a center, it’s not exactly surprising that the two see the comparison with their offensive package and skating.
Kaprizov, who is in his fourth NHL season and is now an alternate captain, has 114 goals and 236 points with the Wild in 205 games career to date.
Meanwhile, the 18-year-old Bedard is only three games into his NHL career. Only six days ago Bedard faced Crosby in the faceoff circle in his NHL debut. The highly-anticipated Bedard has a goal and three points in three games.
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