Connor Bedard

A fascinating, inside look at one of the most highly anticipated rookie seasons in NHL history

When the Chicago Blackhawks selected Connor Bedard with the first overall pick in the 2023 NHL draft, it was the culmination of months—if not years—of unrestrained hype. For the Original Six franchise, nearly a decade removed from a dynastic run of Stanley Cup successes, Bedard represented nothing less than the foundation for future glory.

The 17-year-old centre from North Vancouver had long been projected as a generational talent, tearing up the junior-level WHL and garnering comparisons to Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby. Now, it was time to compete head-to-head with those superstars and step into the lofty prophecies others had written for him.

Through extensive reporting in Chicago and beyond, Tab Bamford chronicles one of the most highly anticipated rookie seasons in modern hockey, following Bedard's Calder Trophy campaign on the ice and the pressurized environment that lingered off it. Encompassing exalted expectations, untimely injuries, countless highlight-reel goals, and the fevered, omnipresent media landscape, Bedard's inaugural season provides a thrilling and expansive portrait of today's NHL.