Zizing 'Em Up: Bedard ready for spotlight at World Junior Championship

NHL.com staff writer Mike Zeisberger has been covering the NHL regularly since 1999. Each Sunday during the season, he will use his extensive network of hockey contacts to write his weekly notes column, "Zizing 'Em Up."

TORONTO -- Connor Bedard has been on some big stages.
But not one of this magnitude. And not one that will have so many people watching him, many who may have never seen him play.
But you can count on the 17-year-old center rising to the challenge for Canada in the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, according to John Paddock, his general manager and coach with Regina of the Western Hockey League.
"This kid lives for the big moments, and people will see that," Paddock said. "I get that some fans will be seeing him for the first time after hearing all the publicity about him. Well, they'll find out all the hype is justified."
The spotlight has followed the projected No. 1 pick in the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft since his minor hockey days in his native Vancouver. It escalated in 2020 when, as a 14-year-old playing for the West Vancouver Academy Under-18 team, became the first player from Western Canada to receive exceptional status, allowing him to be drafted into the league as a 15-year-old. He became the seventh player to receive exceptional status, joining a list that includes John Tavares, Aaron Ekblad and Connor McDavid.
He was one of stars of the 2022 World Juniors, with eight points (four goals, four assists) in seven games to help Canada win gold. But the tournament was rescheduled from Dec. 2021 to Aug. 2022 in Edmonton because of concerns related to the coronavirus pandemic, and the impact of playing hockey in the middle of summer showed.
Despite the fact the games were held at the 18,347-seat Rogers Place, the final between host Canada and Finland drew a less-than-capacity crowd of 13,327. Prior to that, the largest crowd at any game was only 5,204.
That won't be the case for the 2023 event, which runs from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Moncton, New Brunswick. Hockey Canada announced last week that more than 85 percent of tickets for the event "have been spoken for."
It's the type of environment Bedard will embrace and will thrive in, Paddock said.
When it comes to elite talents, Paddock knows of what he speaks. During his playing career, he was teammates with players who went on to become Hockey Hall of Famers, including Bobby Clarke with the 1976-77 Philadelphia Flyers, and Peter Statsny and Michel Goulet with the 1980-81 Quebec Nordiques. He coached future Hall of Famers Teemu Selanne during his stint as Winnipeg Jets coach from 1991-95, and Daniel Alfredsson with the Ottawa Senators in 2007-08.
So, when Paddock says Bedard is "special," there is credibility in his words.
"First of all, it's his hockey IQ," he said. "The way he sees the game, he anticipates plays before they happen. And he's a powerful skater.
"Then there's his shot. His release is so quick. He watches videos of (Toronto Maple Leafs forward) Auston Matthews shooting, and I have to admit his shot kind of reminds me of Matthews.
"And then there is his advanced maturity. Nothing was ever too big for him. He's well grounded."
Paddock referred to an incident on April 7, 2021, to back up that second statement.
On that day, Bedard's 73-year-old grandfather, Garth, was killed in a vehicular accident near Sicamous, British Columbia. When Paddock was informed, he made the decision to not tell Bedard until after Regina's 6-1 victory against the Swift Current Broncos, a game in which the 15-year-old rookie had two goals and two assists.
"It was emotional," Paddock recalled. "He talked to his parents, and we all thought he should go home. But he said 'no,' he wanted to play the next game because his grandfather would have wanted him to. For a 15-year-old kid to make a decision like that, well, it says a lot about him."
Twenty months later, Bedard leads the Canadian Hockey League with 64 points in 28 games, and the WHL in goals (27) and assists (37), and 27-game point streak.
The talent has always been there. Now he has the chance to showcase it in front of his biggest audience yet.
According to Paddock, he won't disappoint.
KEON STOKED BY UPCOMING HONOR, MARNER'S PLAY
On Feb. 4, during 2023 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend, the NHL Alumni Association will hold a Man of the Year brunch in Fort Lauderdale to pay tribute to Hall of Famer and Maple Leafs great Dave Keon. Those scheduled to attend include all-time greats such as forward Wayne Gretzky and defenseman Bobby Orr.
"It's an incredible honor," Keon said in a phone interview from his Florida home Saturday. "And the fact that players like that are coming says a lot about (Alumni Association executive director) Glenn Healy. He's been able to get prominent former players like that involved, which is significant. And the programs they've instituted to help players, well, it's very promising.
"You have to understand. For a lot of alumni, when it came time for their careers to end, it's like 'What now?' That's why it's so important to educate retired players, and Glenn has been trying to do that."
Under Healy's watch, the annual Man of the Year event will be held regularly in conjunction with All-Star Weekend. It's a great idea, given that it's a time when the best of the hockey world congregates to celebrate the sport.
As for Keon, he had 986 points (396 goals, 590 assists) in 1,296 games with the Maple Leafs from 1960-75 and the Hartford Whalers from 1979-82 and is generally regarded as one of the best two-way centers in NHL history. He helped the Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup four times (1962, 1963, 1964, 1967) and won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1967 as the most valuable player of the playoffs.
Keon, now 82, was estranged from the Maple Leafs for a couple of decades after an ugly parting of the ways with them in 1975 involving then-owner Harold Ballard. He later admitted he never felt like a Leaf for years after that and rejected a number of invitations to attend team functions.
Thanks in part to the efforts of current Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan, Keon warmed up to them again and was on hand to watch his No. 14 raised to the rafters at Scotiabank Arena in 2016. Not long afterward his statue was unveiled as part of Legends Row just outside the arena.
Now he says he's watching Toronto games and has been impressed by Maple Leafs forward Mitchell Marner, who set the franchise record for consecutive games with a 23-game point streak that ended Thursday.
"I've watched him since he came into the League and always thought he's going to be a good player," Keon said. "Now he's expanded that a whole lot.
"They're playing really well. For the first time in a long time, they look like they have a hockey team.
"Of course, for this group, they'll be measured by what they do in the playoffs come April."
LUKE SCHENN'S REBOOT
There has been no shortage of questions regarding the futures of Vancouver Canucks forwards Brock Boeser and Bo Horvat, and whether either will be traded, if not both.
But the speculation hasn't ended there. When defenseman Luke Schenn saw his name mentioned as a potential trade candidate in reports recently, he was reminded how far his career has come.
At the end of the 2019 season, he was looking for work, wondering where his career was heading. Three years and two Stanley Cup championships with the Tampa Bay Lightning later, he's enjoying life in Vancouver and finds it intriguing that his name is in rumors.
"You know, when you've cleared waivers earlier in your career and feel no one wants you, and you're doing anything to stay in the League, it's humbling to be talked about like that," the 33-year-old said. "I feel at my age, I've reinvented myself and have plenty of hockey left."
Calgary Flames coach Darryl Sutter agreed and told reporters in Calgary last week that Schenn "would be captain on most teams."
Schenn was selected No. 5 in the 2008 NHL Draft by the Maple Leafs. The 6-foot-2, 225-pound defenseman came into the League with the nickname, "The Human Eraser," for his physical style of play and big hits.
"Trouble was, the game was changing," he said. "Drew Doughty and Alex Pietrangelo were picked right ahead of me, guys who provided offense. The game was changing at the time, trending towards smaller defensemen who could carry the puck.
"The days of physical defensemen being picked early in the first round were ending."
For the next 11 seasons he played for six teams: the Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings, Arizona Coyotes, Anaheim Ducks and Canucks.
"Ten years into your career and suddenly you're sent to the minors for the first time too," he said of joining San Diego of the American Hockey League in 2018-19. "But I used it as a learning experience."
He also credits working with former NHL player Adam Oates as improving his game.
"Prior to that, my coaches would tell me just to get rid of the puck and concentrate on defensive duties," he said. "But Adam told me you have to know how to handle the puck in the modern game.
"I was always told before that to work on my skating. But at my size, how much faster can you get? I learned about positioning and how to be more effective with it."
He signed with the Lightning for the 2019-20 season and won the Stanley Cup with Tampa Bay in back-to-back seasons. He joined the Canucks in 2021 and said he wants to stay in Vancouver.
In the process, he recently passed retired Brooks Orpik for the most hits by a defenseman in NHL history with 2,965.
"I guess I can still play," he said with a chuckle. "I really do feel there's a lot left in the tank."
QUOTE/UNQUOTE
"I think the fans have been a huge part. They've been great for us, cheering us on. We just want to create an identity at home. I think that's big, especially when we started the season on the road so much. It's important to create that identity at home." -- Arizona Coyotes defenseman Josh Brown on 5,000-seat Mullett Arena, where they are 4-3-1
THE SUNDAY LIST
Maple Leafs captain John Tavares said he'll be closely monitoring this year's World Junior Championship, when he isn't practicing or playing, of course. The 32-year-old forward comes by his passion for the tournament honestly, having won gold with Canada in 2008 and 2009. Keeping that in mind, we asked Tavares for his three favorite all-time tournament moments. Given his history, he has a pro-Canadian bias for obvious reasons.
McTavish magic, 2022 final between Canada and Finland: "I know it might not get the same notoriety as some of the other tourneys because it was played in the summer, but Mason McTavish stopping the puck from crossing the goal line and swatting it away was incredible. It was overtime so if it goes in, Finland wins. It was a gold-medal saving play, especially since (Kent Johnson) scored the winner for Canada a minute or two later for the 3-2 victory. The skill it takes to do what McTavish did is unbelievable."
Price-Toews shootout success, 2007 semifinal between Canada and the United States: "I'll never forget that shootout when Jonathan Toews scored three times in it to give Canada the 2-1 win.
Carey Price
was amazing in net, both in the shootout and in the entire tournament (1.14 goals-against average). I think I was cut from that team, so it was unique that I was part of their camp and then witness them go over there and have an unbelievable tournament on their way to gold."
Eberle saves the day, 2009 semifinal between Canada and Russia:"Maybe I'm being a bit selfish here because I was part of that gold-medal team, but watching Jordan Eberle tie the game 5-5 with six seconds left for us, it was just a special moment to be part of. We ended up winning the game and the tourney, but that game will always be a favorite for me."