Bedard's mom discusses being parent of projected No. 1 pick in 2023 Draft

REGINA, Saskatchewan -- Life as a hockey mom isn't easy.

Being the mother of the player many believe is the next generational talent in the NHL might be even more overwhelming, but that's the reality facing Melanie Bedard.
Melanie is the mom of Connor Bedard, who is the overwhelming choice to not only be the No. 1 pick in the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft, but a player who could dramatically change the fortunes of the NHL team lucky enough to win the top pick in the 2023 NHL Draft Lottery.
These days, she lives with Connor in Regina, where the wunderkind plays for the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League, while her husband, Tom, and daughter, Madisen, 20, remain in their primary residence in North Vancouver.
Such is the life of a hockey mom. During a sit-down with NHL.com at Good Earth, her favorite coffee shop in Regina, Melanie provided her unique perspective on watching her son not only play hockey, but also become a celebrity at 17 years old.
"When my husband watched Connor when he started playing, he'd be surprised with what he could do with the puck, but I don't think we ever really thought of it like [something special was happening]," Melanie said after and a sip of her choice selection, Caffe Americano.
"We had agents calling us when he was 10 years old, and we thought there must be something they see but we just always knew he was crazy about hockey," she said. "Even at World Juniors, was that that good?"

You be the judge. Bedard led all players at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship with 23 points (nine goals, 14 assists) and was named the tournament's top forward and most valuable player, helping Canada win a second straight gold medal.
He set the record for most goals and points by a Canada player in a single World Juniors and came within six points (36 points; 17 goals, 19 assists, in 15 games) of tying Hockey Hall of Fame forward Peter Forsberg for most in a career at the WJC (42 points).
But Melanie doesn't keep score in the traditional sense.
"I honestly just don't look at it that way, maybe because he's my son and we just want him to enjoy what he's doing," she said.
Bedard enjoys what he's doing ... a lot.
So do the people who watch him. And even though his name is atop every NHL draft board, one would never know it judging by how he carries himself on and off the ice around Brandt Center, home to Regina.
"My dad is my hero and someone I look up to so much, and I wouldn't be anywhere without him, my mom and my sister," Connor Bedard said. "They're the reason I'm here."
It's that side of Connor mom recognizes and appreciates every day.
"When I watch him play, as a mom it's hard for me to really enjoy it because I'm always thinking, 'I hope he doesn't feel all this pressure' and is just out there having fun," she said. "Up until the World Juniors this year, I really could be quite anonymous around here. People didn't know but I think a few people saw me on TSN so since World Juniors they come up to me now.
"I don't ever want to say I don't enjoy watching it, but I definitely feel the pressure when I'm watching and I just hope I'm feeling that for him, and he's the one just enjoying it."
She said the World Juniors was an extra-special moment.
"I'm so proud of him, especially when he's wearing that Canada jersey because we've watched that tournament since Connor was a baby and when he was growing up," she said. "So those feelings of pride when he's wearing it, whether they win or lose, are proud moments as a hockey parent. But it's probably a lot more stress than I would have imagined."

Melanie also knows Connor has become a role model for many young and aspiring hockey players living in Regina. He's been handling that part of his everyday life extraordinarily well, too.
On Feb. 7, Regina held its second and final team signing event of the season at Brandt Centre. The scheduled two-hour session lasted 5 1/2 hours for Bedard, Regina's captain.
"He handled it very well," Melanie said. "He didn't get home until midnight that night even though the signing was supposed to be two hours. He came home and was in really good spirits. He said to me, 'You know what, I at least had something to do.' He said people stood in that line just waiting.
"I was happy that he thought of it that way ... looking at it from other people's perspective. It's something he's good at."
Sometimes, though, Bedard needs to draw the line for the benefit of his family.
"Last year, he'd get recognized in some places and sign things, but this year has been really different, especially after World Juniors," Melanie said. "Everywhere he goes now, he's handling it, because there were some moments the last couple of months where we've had people outside of our house. In those moments, Connor might just come inside and say, 'Mom, can you close the blinds?'
"I think he knows if he starts engaging there, he's not going to have any sort of privacy. I felt that was really mature of him to know that and I think it's really important that he knew that because you want a place where you can just come home every so often."
And when he is home, he likes to eat. But not like your normal teenager.
"He's never had fast food ... he will at some point, but he hasn't eaten at McDonald's or anything yet," Melanie said. "I think we all know when we eat well, how you feel, and then when we kind of go off the rails. I think he's just aware of that feeling. On game days, he'll eat chicken, rice, vegetable, shrimp, mashed yams, chicken, salmon. It's kind of a rotation.
"A lot of times he'll text me and I'll laugh because I'll get these texts while he's at school that ask, 'How about chicken tonight? How about quesadillas?'
"Sure, let me just whip that up," she said with a hearty laugh.
What qualities does she most admire about her son?
"I think he's a really good person," she said. "He would never cheat to get anything. I don't even know how I would word that because it's so hard to talk about my kids without sounding like you're bragging but I'm proud of the fact he's honest, a good friend and compassionate about others."
Photos: Bedard family
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