(670 The Score) While Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard is just 18 years old, general manager Kyle Davidson harbored no doubt that he could quickly help make a difference on the ice.
Bedard did just that in his much-anticipated NHL debut Tuesday, recording an assist and pressuring the Penguins with 11 shots as the Blackhawks rallied for a 4-2 win in their season opener. What has actually impressed Davidson more is how Bedard has smoothly handled the increased attention and demands off the ice that have come with being not just the No. 1 overall draft pick but also one of the most-hyped prospects in the history of the sport.
“As far as on the ice, I didn’t have any questions there that he would be able to acclimate quickly and get off on the right foot from that perspective,” Davidson said on the Mully & Haugh Show on Wednesday morning. “It’s the off-ice and the demands that are – the attention is not new, but the level of attention and the number of obligations that come along with someone in his situation, you don’t know how that’s going to impact the player off the ice. So I would say how he’s handled himself off the ice has kind of impressed me a little bit more. And not that his on-ice (performance) hasn’t impressed me, but it’s just that we’ve studied him and seen him perform at a high level for so long that I thought that would be a seamless transition for him.”
Davidson appreciated how Bedard has displayed composure at every turn and how the Blackhawks as a team performed well in the spotlight Tuesday, when they played a nationally televised game on ESPN on NHL opening night.
“I wasn’t worried about him handling it, because I think he’s got the personality,” Davidson said of Bedard. “He’s only 18, but he does have experience dealing with this kind of sort of circus or the attention whether it’s in junior hockey in Regina or world juniors for Team Canada. He’s dealt with that spotlight before. So I wasn’t worried about it from his standpoint. You just never know how it’s going to impact the larger group and their ability to perform. But you know what, I think everyone took it in stride. They got through that opening game. I thought we played excellently.”