The future of the NHL has never looked brighter due to the increase in talent across the league. While generational talents Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane, and Alexander Ovechkin can be attributed to the league’s success at the turn of the century, the future lies on the backs of Connor McDavid, Connor Bedard, and others. The Connors were arguably the two greatest prospects to ever be selected in the NHL Draft, and while they have an eight-year age gap, comparing their rookie seasons can better contextualize who will have the better future.
Before the NHL
Prior to the NHL, both McDavid and Bedard played in the Canadian Hockey League. McDavid played for the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League where he scored 44 goals and 120 points in 47 games during his draft year. He also scored 21 goals and 49 points in 20 playoff games. Bedard played for the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League where he scored 71 goals and 143 points in 57 games. He also scored 10 goals and 20 points in seven playoff games.
McDavid finished the season with .97 goals per game, 1.55 assists per game, and 2.52 points per game. Bedard finished the season with 1.27 goals per game, 1.28 assists per game, and 2.55 points per game.
Rookie Seasons
McDavid was selected first overall by the bottom-feeder Edmonton Oilers in the 2015 Draft, and Bedard entered a similar situation with the Chicago Blackhawks as the first overall pick in the 2023 Draft. From there, both McDavid and Bedard missed games in their rookie seasons due to injuries, with Bedard’s season being cut short to 68 games while McDavid played just 45 games.
On an 82-game pace, McDavid finished his rookie season with around 29 goals, 58 assists, and 87 points, primarily playing alongside Jordan Eberle, Benoît Pouliot, and occasionally Nail Yakupov. McDavid evidently did not receive much help as even with his missed games, he finished the season with more points than each of his three most popular linemates.
Bedard’s rookie season was the same story as he played on a similarly depleted roster. He finished the season with approximately 27 goals, 47 assists, and 74 points over an 82-game pace. His most popular linemates were Nick Foligno and Phillip Kurashev.
Related: Connor Bedard Caps off Whirlwind Season With Calder Trophy Win
Despite missing 14 games, Bedard led the Blackhawks in goals, assists, and points. He went on to win the Calder Trophy Award, given to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the NHL. McDavid did not win the Calder Trophy due to his shortened season and Artemi Panarin’s 30-goal, 77 rookie campaign with the Blackhawks.
Blackhawks Must Take Notes
The goal of comparing these two generational talents to one another is not to say who was a better prospect or rookie, but rather to show how the Oilers developed McDavid and what the Blackhawks should learn in building around Bedard.
As successful as McDavid is with his four Ted Lindsay Awards, three Hart Memorial Trophies, five Art Ross Trophies, Maurice Richard Trophy, and Conn Smythe Trophy, the Oilers have not won a Stanley Cup in his nine-season career. Of course, it takes more than one player to win a Stanley Cup and they were close last season, but the Oilers made many mistakes, and the Blackhawks should take note.
The Blackhawks need to create a timeline around Bedard. He is currently on his entry-level contract, so by the time it expires in the 2026 offseason, his salary will go from under $1 million annually to well above $10 million, likely in the $12 to $15 million annual average range. As tempting as it is to try to capitalize on this opportunity, the Blackhawks must not be too aggressive too soon.
Following McDavid’s rookie season, the Oilers signed Milan Lucic to a seven-year contract. Everyone knows how that turned out, as he was eventually swapped for James Neal who was later bought out, creating a dead cap hit the team is still paying today.
Similar to the 2016 Oilers, the Blackhawks had a busy start to the 2024 offseason, signing free agent forwards Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen, in addition to trading for Ilya Mikheyev. These signings were not made to win a Stanley Cup this season, but rather to improve Bedard’s linemates to ensure he is not stuck playing alongside bottom-six talent.
Importantly, Blackhawk’s general manager Kyle Davidson avoided the mistakes of the 2016 Oilers by staying away from high-risk, long-term contracts. Bertuzzi is signed for four seasons, Teravainen for three seasons, and Mikheyev has two years left on his deal.
The Blackhawks needed to spend money this offseason to reach the salary cap floor, and Davidson brought in the players necessary to build a strong offense around Bedard without hurting the team’s long-term cap structure. Breaking down the team’s long-term salary cap outlook, there is only $19.6 million in signed salary for the 2027-28 season, including Seth Jones’ $9.5 million cap hit that expires the following offseason.
Prioritize Prospect Development
The Blackhawks must also not rush their top prospects. It is easy to have a player like Bedard and want to maximize each season he has with the team, but Stanley Cup champions are not built overnight. Following the Oilers’ signing of Lucic, they won just one playoff series in the following five seasons. Of course, this is not to be blamed on Lucic, but rather it represents the team’s misunderstanding of its talent.
The Oilers eventually traded young rising stars like Eberle, Yakupov, Taylor Hall, and Jesse Puljujärvi for various reasons, but a common thread among them was organizational mismanagement. The most notable player the Oilers maintained was Ryan Nugent-Hopkins who, instead of being rushed, was eased through development and became the current roster’s most valuable two-way forward. By keeping him in the late 2010s, the Oilers landed an eventual 100+ point, two-way forward on one of the most bargain contracts in the NHL.
Blackhawks’ top prospects Artyom Levshunov, Frank Nazar, Oliver Moore, Sam Rinzel, Sacha Boisvert, Ethan Del Mastro, Drew Commesso, Landon Slaggert, Marek Vanacker, and others will all play a pivotal role in the team’s future. By learning from the Oilers’ mistakes, each player should be gradually introduced to the NHL, and this seems to be the approach the team has adopted so far.
Moore and Rinzel have returned to college for another season despite being ready to play in the American Hockey League (AHL). Levshunov was signed to an entry-level contract and will likely begin the season in the AHL alongside Commesso, Del Mastro, and Slaggert. Boisvert and Vanacker will return to their junior teams from last season.
It is easy to have open roster spots and rush young talent to the NHL, but by easing top prospects through development, the Blackhawks prove they are looking to build a sustained window from 2027 and beyond, instead of trying to win now. Davidson has instead filled these roster holes with accomplished veterans to teach the young core what it takes to establish long and successful NHL careers.
The Blackhawks are learning from the Oilers’ experience with McDavid by building a team around Bedard without rushing the timeline By focusing on prospect development and minimizing risky contracts, the Blackhawks can set up a concrete foundation for long-term success. With Bedard leading, along with promising prospects and experienced veterans, Chicago has a chance to build an even stronger team than it had in the early 2010s.
