Considering the skill set of Chicago Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard, it’s hard to imagine one of his favorite players being Dallas Stars defenseman Chris Tanev.
That was, however, Bedard’s player of choice as the 18-year-old rookie told beat reporters Julian McKenzie and Mark Lazerus of The Athletic in an interview published on Friday, April 5.
“[Tanev] just ate pucks,” Bedard told The Athletic. “He’d put his face in front of it, if he needed to, every night. So I had a lot of respect for him, just watching the way he played.
“I thought it was pretty cool what (Tanev) did. When you watch a team all the time like that, I think you notice guys like that more.”
Bedard and Tanev share a training partner in former NHL player Gary Roberts, who works out with the two players in Toronto every summer.
The Blackhawks and the Stars will go against each other on Saturday, April 6, the first time Bedard and Tanev will share an NHL rink after the rookie was ruled out of the first game between both teams with a broken jaw last January.
Connor Bedard Is Still Shocked Meeting Superstars on the Ice
Bedard admitted to still being “a little bit” awestruck at times when he faces NHL superstars on the ice these days. Nothing surprising, considering he’s not even close to turning 20 years old.
“(I was awestruck) a little bit at first,” Bedard said. “But in the end, we’re all just human beings.
“You meet someone you grew up watching and they’re the same as you, or the same as everyone in a lot of ways. Human beings. Obviously, it’s cool, but you figure that out pretty quickly.”
Bedard kicked off his NHL career by facing off against future Hall of Famer Sidney Crosby as both share the same position on the ice playing center for the Blackhawks and the Penguins respectively.
“You don’t really think of that stuff when you’re playing,” Tanev said when asked about Bedard’s thoughts about him being one of his favorite players. “But once in a while, it’s nice just to hear that from people.”
Will Connor Bedard & Sidney Crosby Play Together in 2024?
Team Canada is interested in putting Bedard and Crosby on the same team as soon as next May, according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN, as Heavy documented on Thursday, April 4.
“Team Canada general manager Rick Nash has reached out to [Bedard and Anaheim Ducks center Mason McTavish] because those two players’ teams have been eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs,” LeBrun said.
“It’s Team Canada’s plan to reach out to [Sidney Crosby] if and when the Penguins get eliminated,” LeBrun added.
For now, that call will have to wait. The Blackhawks were the second team eliminated from the postseason race in early March, but Pittsburgh’s late-season resurgence has the Penguins very much in the fight for a Stanley Cup Playoffs berth against all odds.
Pittsburgh has 81 points in 76 games with six contests left in their schedule. They are only two points behind Philadelphia, currently sitting in the second wild-card spot with 83 points in 77 games. Only the Washington Capitals and the Detroit Red Wings (82 points in 76 games each) are ranked between the Flyers and the Penguins in the wild-card race.
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Connor Bedard Praises Favorite Player Before Matchup: ‘He Just Eats Pucks’