Chicago Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard became the youngest player in NHL history to be selected to the All-Star Game on Thursday. Bedard, currently 18 years and 171 days old, will displace Buffalo Sabers forward Jeff Skinner, who previously held that record.
The 2024 All-Star Game will take place on February 3, when Bedard will be 18 years, 203 days old. Skinner was 18 years and 259 days old at the 2011 All-Star Game.
The Blackhawks selected Bedard with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft and he did not disappoint.
On Thursday, the center had scored 15 goals and provided assists in 18 to 37 games played. He leads Chicago in both categories as well as all rookies in the NHL. Bedard was named Rookie of the Month in both November and December.
The Blackhawks have a record of 11-24-2 and are in eighth place in the Central Division.
Why was Bedard chosen?
You could be a cynic and say that the league only wants its biggest names in the game for marketing purposes and therefore wants Bedard – the league's most promising and exciting rookie – to be the center of attention in one of its main events. You can be a harsh realist and say that there are simply no other viable options for a Blackhawks team that is near the bottom of the standings and plagued by injuries.
But the truth is that Bedard deserves to be in the All-Star Game. It's hard to overstate how impressive he was. It's not just because he scored 15 goals and 18 assists in 37 games as an 18-year-old, it's also because he does it with so little help, and in a squad filled with players from the bottom six games and AHL/NHL tweeners. Bedard's linemates this season have been deep forwards like Nick Foligno, Philipp Kurashev, Ryan Donato and Anthony Beauvillier, not your typical top talent. Nevertheless, he just keeps producing.
And it's not just the numbers, it's the often spectacular way he puts them together – whether by picking Nikita Kucherov's bag and setting up a 2-on-1, or by running the puck along against Florida stealing from the goal line and covering a no-look, short-side flick or simply blasting the goalie one shot at a time with his patented drag-and-drive trigger. Bedard has somehow lived up to the almost ridiculous hype that surrounded him, and he's not even 18.5 years old.
The kid belongs in the All-Star game and will undoubtedly be a fixture there for years to come. — Mark Lazerus, senior NHL writer
Why this matters to the NHL
No player in NHL history has entered the league with as much enthusiasm as Bedard. Social media just wasn't what it is today when people like Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby came along. The entire hockey world knew about Bedard long before he came into the league.
Since his arrival, he has done nothing to quell the hype. He has attracted a huge following of hockey and non-hockey fans who follow his games. He was talked about in areas where hockey isn't usually talked about. And as he continues to grow, this will continue to benefit the NHL.
The league having him in the All-Star Game – and rightfully so – will only expand that platform further. – Scott Powers, senior Blackhawks writer
Required reading
(Photo: Dilip Vishwanat / NHLI via Getty Images)