Bedard performs well in fitness testing at 2023 NHL Scouting Combine

BUFFALO --Connor Bedard didn't set any goals for the fitness testing portion of the 2023 NHL Scouting Combine presented by adidas on Saturday.

"I didn't have any expectations coming in," said Bedard, expected to be the No. 1 pick of the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on June 28. "Just give it my all and I did that. I kind of left everything out there for the test. That's all you can ask for."

The center for Regina of the Western Hockey League finished in the top 25 among the 100 prospects who took part in the testing in four categories.

His best finish was the 14 pull-ups he did, tied for second with three other players: defenseman Cameron Allen of Guelph of the Ontario Hockey League, forward Danny Nelson of the USA Hockey National Team Development Program Under-18 team and forward Bradly Nadeau of Penticton of the British Columbia Hockey League. Hamilton (OHL) forward Nick Lardis was first with 15.

Bedard also lasted 12:00 on the Vo2 Max bike test, which measures a player's stamina. That test was Friday, and Bedard said that was more difficult then the Wingate ergometer bike test, a 30-second full-out sprint that replicates a shift for a skater, which was the final spot in the testing gauntlet Saturday.

"You're on [the Vo2] for way longer and by the end it's a full sprint for about a minute or more until you can't really go anymore," Bedard said. "I found that one a lot more difficult. ... The [Wingate] is tough but it's just 30 seconds so it goes by decently quick."

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Among the other top performers were forward Samuel Honzek of Vancouver (WHL). Honzek (6-3, 186), No. 9 in NHL Central Scouting's final ranking North American skaters presented by BioSteel, topped all prospects on the Wingate bike, generating a peak power output of 22.4 watts per kilogram of body weight.

He also had a 117.5 inch standing broad jump, second behind University of Wisconsin forward Charlie Stramel (118.0). He also timed out at 4.32 seconds in the pro agility shuttle run starting to the left (tied for 14th) and the right (tied for fourth).

That comes after he Honzek missed more than two months because of a skate cut to his left calf sustained in December that required more than 20 stitches to repair the muscle and more than 20 to close the cut. The injury denied him a chance to play for Slovakia at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship and at the 2023 CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game on Jan. 25.

"It was really tough," Honzek said. "But injuries are part of hockey and it will happen over time. I talked to our mental coach and he said stay positive, work hard and I had a couple more weeks to spend in the gym and come back stronger and better and ... I think I came back really strong and better."

In addition to the most pull-ups, Lardis had the highest vertical jump (25.49 inches). Defenseman Jordan Tourigny of Shawinigan in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League led all players in the Vo2 Max test at 13:48; goalie Michael Hrabal of Omaha of the United States Hockey League had an 82.51 inch wing span; and Chicoutimi (QMJHL) defenseman Matteo Mann had the strongest grip with his left hand (182 pounds) and right hand (185 pounds).

For a look at the top 25 finishers in all categories, click here.

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