The Pittsburgh Penguins played host to one of the most anticipated NHL debuts in recent memory.

Hockey fans have been waiting for quite a while to witness the NHL debut of Connor Bedard, and the Pittsburgh Penguins were lucky enough to be the hosts for one of the most anticipated games of the year.

All eyes were on the matchup between the Penguins and Chicago Blackawks, and while it wasn’t as memorable a night as scoring four goals, like Auston Matthews, Bedard didn’t disappoint.

It all started on the opening face off, which Sidney Crosby won with some real veteran authority, but Bedard was all over the ice all night.

In 21:29 seconds of ice time, Bedard recorded an assist for his first career point in the NHL.

A simple secondary assist on a goal from Ryan Donato, but he'll take it to get his career started.

While Bedard didn’t find the back of the net in his debut, he showed off his powerful shot on multiple occasions.

Bedard factored in on five of the Blackhawks 36 total shots and a few of them were good opportunities for the rookie.

Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry had his work cut out for him trying to keep Bedard off the scoreboard.

“He’s a good player, he gets a lot of opportunities,” Jarry said. “He’s on the first line so you see a lot of him.”

On more than one occasion, it was clear that Bedard is ready for the bright lights of the NHL; aside from his shot, there were a few instances where he showed off his stick handling ability and speed with the puck.

Bedard was a handful at times for Penguins defenders.

“Already at his young age, he’s so good, so shifty,” Kris Letang said. “I had to play him hard. He’s really deceptive. You can’t look at the puck once, he’s so fast.”

Even away from the puck, Bedard was a noticeable figure getting his stick in the way of multiple passes to breakup plays and create takeaways.

Despite being down 2-0, the Blackhawks found a way to defeat the Penguins and give Bedard a victory in his debut.

The Blackhawks may not collect too many wins this season, but Bedard is sure to be a problem for the rest of the league.

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Penguins for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.

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