After far from storybook season, McKenna first overall NHL pick

Beating adversity will be asset in new life with Leafs

Gavin McKenna, centre, dons a Leafs jersey. (Photo by Natalie Shaver/CHL)

In the year leading up to being the first overall selection in the NHL Entry Draft, Gavin McKenna traveled a path no else has ever travelled.

Last Friday, McKenna was picked first overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL Entry Draft held at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. Pop superstar Justin Bieber, who is from London, Ontario, put on a WWE style promo in making the first overall pick for the Leafs, and in the process he drew huge amounts of loud boos from the partisan Buffalo fans adding to the entertainment spectacle of the event.

From that moment, McKenna, who is from Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory, has had a love in with the Leafs organization, their fans and Toronto as a city. The honeymoon phase of McKenna’s arrival in Toronto is definitely on.

The 18-year-old left-winger ultimately ended up where he was supposed to be after navigating a 2025-26 campaign with the Penn State University Nittany Lions that contained various twists and turns. During that campaign, McKenna dealt with criticisms coming from a slow first half of the season to dealing with legal matters that came up early in the second half of the campaign.

The adversity McKenna faced might make him ready for the adversity he will eventually encounter playing in the fishbowl setting the Leafs deal with in Toronto that is unlike any other market in the NHL.

Back in June of 2025, McKenna was targeted to be the consensus first overall selection in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. He had just come off a sensational 17-year-old season in the WHL with the Medicine Hat Tigers in 2024-25.

In 56 regular season games, McKenna, who stands 6-feet and weighs 170 pounds, piled up 129 points coming off 41 goals and 88 assists to go with a plus-60 rating in the plus-minus department. He helped the Tigers finish second overall in the WHL’s regular season standings with a 47-17-3-1 record.

McKenna proceeded to help the Tigers win their sixth WHL title in team history posting a 16-2 mark in the 2025 WHL Playoffs. He played in 16 games in the WHL Playoffs recording nine goals and 29 assists for 38 points to go with a plus-14 rating.

The Tigers proceeded to advance to the Memorial Cup tournament that crowns a CHL champion. At that year’s tournament played in Rimouski, Quebec, Medicine Hat topped the preliminary round standings with a 3-0 mark to make the event’s championship game. In the Memorial Cup title clash, the Tigers fell 4-1 to the London Knights, who are a storied powerhouse in the OHL.

In the four games the Tigers played at the Memorial Cup tournament, McKenna had three goals and three assists and a plus-two rating.

Gavin McKenna in action in the 2025 WHL final.

He piled up the trophy case with all sorts of individual honours that season. The honours that came McKenna’s way included being named the recipient of the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as WHL player of the year and being named the CHL player of the year. I even had one or two hockey observers tell me they thought McKenna was more NHL ready than phenom centre Connor Bedard was when he joined the Chicago Blackhawks as an 18-year-old.

Due to the fact McKenna didn’t turn 18 until December 20, 2025, he wasn’t eligible for the 2025 NHL Entry Draft that was held June 27 to 28 of that year in Los Angeles, California. Had McKenna been eligible for that draft, he would have been selected first overall.

Back when the Tigers selected McKenna first overall in the 2022 WHL Prospects Draft, they were expecting to have him for his 18-year-old season due to his December birth date. That all changed on November 7, 2024 when the NCAA Division I Council voted to abolish old rules that classified CHL players as professional.

Starting on August 1, 2025, players from the CHL’s three major junior circuits in the WHL, OHL and QMJHL were eligible to play for NCAA Division I teams. Basically, CHL players will maintain NCAA eligibility as long as they have not signed an entry-level contract with an NHL team.

Since 2021, the NCAA’s guidelines regarding name, image and likeness (NIL) changed, and athletes were now able to make money through NIL deals. With McKenna being viewed in June 2025 as the consensus first overall selection for the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, the writing was on the wall that NCAA teams were in a recruiting battle to bring him to the United States.

McKenna officially committed to joining the Nittany Lions on July 8, 2025. In July, ESPN reported McKenna’s NIL money for attending Penn State is “in the ballpark” of US$700,000.

It seemed like McKenna was poised to have a dream season with Penn State before joining the NHL. Fairly or unfairly depending on your view, the NIL payout to McKenna brought expectations to perform. He ended up having the most roller-coaster season of his hockey career to date, which inadvertently might prepare him for life with the Leafs.

During the first half of the 2025-26 campaign with the Nittany Lions, McKenna came face to face with tonnes of criticism from media that covers NCAA Division I men’s hockey for being underwhelming. He recorded four goals, 14 assists and a minus-five rating in his first 16 games with Penn State.

Observers that saw McKenna play in the NCAA during that time said he has been outstanding skating on the power play or four-versus-four situations when he has time and space on the ice. The NCAA league is filled with players aged 18 to 23 with the majority being aged 20 to 23 and that changed things for McKenna when it came to five-on-five play.

When it came to McKenna’s five-on-five play going against players who are more physically developed because of their age, observers said McKenna hadn’t been good. Observers noted McKenna has shown a lack of engagement and been unwilling to compete in those situations. The word “passenger” was used to describe McKenna’s effort when it came to five-on-five play.

Gavin McKenna was the CHL player of the year in 2024-25.

The criticisms of McKenna’s play intensified at World Juniors, which were played from December 26, 2025 to this past January 5 in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. The criticisms reached their height after Canada fell 6-4 to Czechia in a semifinal contest on January 4 in Saint Paul.

In that loss, McKenna had one assist and took some bad penalties inside the last six minutes of the third period. On the eye test, he didn’t look good during five-on-five play and made business decisions bowing away from spots where he had to compete and battle for the puck. The fact McKenna lost his cool after Czechia’s empty-net goal inside the final 30 seconds of that game where he got an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and a 10-minute misconduct didn’t help things.

At that point, it was pretty definite McKenna was not a lock to be selected first overall in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. Skilled forward Ivar Stenberg of Sweden, who played for that country’s Frolunda FC men’s team, and Canadian defenceman Keaton Verhoeff, who is an alum of the WHL’s Victoria Royals and was playing for the NCAA’s University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks, entered the chat.

On the ice, the semifinal loss ended up being the turning point of McKenna’s season. It seemed like he was hearing the noise at that point.

In Canada’s 6-3 bronze medal win over Finland one night later in Saint Paul, he looked a lot more dialed in when it came to playing a strong game at both ends of the ice. He finished with one goal and three assists to be named the game MVP for Canada.

In Canada’s seven overall games at World Juniors, McKenna recorded four goals, 10 assists and a plus-seven rating.

During the second half of the Nittany Lions season, he skated in 19 games recording 11 goals, 22 assists and a minus-two rating. On the season in Penn State, McKenna finished with 51 points coming off 15 goals and 36 assists in 35 games to go with a minus-seven rating. The Nittany Lions made it to the round of 16 in the NCAA Division I championship tournament and fell 3-1 to the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs 3-1 at the MVP Arena in Albany, New York on March 27.

Penn State finished the 2025-26 campaign with a 21-14-2 overall record. McKenna was Big Ten Conference Scoring Champion with 38 points coming off 11 goals and 27 assists in 24 conference games. He was also named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year and a Hobey Baker Memorial Award Top 10- Finalist amongst the accolades he piled up for the season.

During the second half of the season, McKenna hit a big bump off the ice on January 31 following his team’s 5-4 overtime loss against the Michigan State University Spartans in an outdoor contest played at Beaver Stadium before 74,575 spectators on the Penn State campus.

Following an alleged physical altercation on the evening of January 31 in downtown State College, McKenna was charged with felony aggravated assault, misdemeanour simple assault, disorderly conduct and harassment. According to the Onward State media outlet, the incident occurred at 8:45 p.m. in front of the Pugh Street Parking Garage and McKenna and his group were coming from Doggie’s Pub. He was arraigned on February 4 and released on $20,000 unsecure bail.

Gavin McKenna has faced adversity since leaving the Tigers.

On February 6 after reviewing a video of the altercation, Centre County District Attorney and State College Police decided that the video showed there was no evidence that McKenna had acted with the intent to cause serious bodily injury and the aggravated assault charge was dropped.

On April 21, Forbes reported McKenna waived his formal arraignment in Pennsylvania court, which is a procedural step that moves his criminal case forward without requiring him to appear in person for that hearing. Basically at that point, the defendant’s lawyer confirmed receipt of the charges and a not guilty plea is generally entered automatically. The Forbes piece said that move is largely for procedural efficiency allowing the case to proceed without an additional court date that rarely changes the direction of the matter.

McKenna’s case has been advanced into the pretrial phase of the criminal process. At this stage, both sides engage in work to see if the matter can be resolved without a trial. Alternative resolutions are also explored at this point.

The Forbes article goes on to say McKenna will raise the self-defence argument as he is facing only misdemeanour charges, and his defence counsel is also likely telling prosecutors that no jury will convict McKenna given the claim that he was acting to protect his mother, Krystal, while also being harassed by the victim along with the fact he is a first time offender.

After that development, Krystal was charged on April 29 with two misdemeanour counts of furnishing alcohol to minors for an alleged incident occurring on the evening of January 31 inside Doggies Pub.

From what I can tell, these legal matters are still ongoing. In the time since Gavin’s initial arrest, I had a couple of folks message me that live in the United States to tell me it is common in that country for people to antagonize celebrities into getting the celebrity to attack them in order to get a big payout in civil court with a lawsuit over physical damages.

Looking at how the case is playing out with the McKenna family, I believe and speculate this whole situation stinks of the victim potentially trying to get a payout from Gavin or law enforcement officers trying to make up for missteps in doing their jobs. Still, I have learned from court reporters over the years to never be certain about the outcomes a court system will give to a case. The McKenna family legal situation has the potential to not go away any time soon and continue to be a pain in the butt dealing with the lesser charges.

In another smaller adversity that came up, Gavin McKenna did take on criticism for deciding against playing for Canada at the International Ice Hockey Federation’s Men’s World Championship held this past May 15 to 31 in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland, to better prepare for the NHL Draft Combine. The Combine was held in the KeyBank Center in Buffalo from June 1 to 6, and McKenna finished in the top 10 of five of the fitness tests.

With having to deal with all these adversities in the last 12 months, McKenna might be the most prepared prospect to ever play for the Leafs and the fishbowl that goes with playing in Toronto. He has also traveled a path no other first overall NHL Entry Draft selection has ever had to travel.

McKenna is also a Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation citizen, and he became the second Indigenous player to go first overall in the NHL Entry Draft with centre Dale McCourt going to the Detroit Red Wings in 1977. If McKenna flourishes into NHL stardom with the Leafs, he could make a major societal impact in being a major positive influence in Indigenous communities.

Gavin McKenna (#72) celebrates scoring a goal in the 2025 WHL Playoffs.

Due to the fact he is going to play in Toronto, it is not naïve to say more adversities are coming McKenna’s way. Those adversities would be hard pressed to be more challenging than the ones he has come across over the past 12 months.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Raiders’ Rudolph might be wisest potential NHL Draft pick

Daxon Rudolph was named the WHL player of the week on Monday.

Daxon Rudolph may be the player that gives an NHL team the most value in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft.

The 17-year-old Prince Albert Raiders defenceman seems like a certainty to be selected in the first round of the upcoming NHL Entry Draft, which will be held June 26 and 27 in Buffalo, New York. In most debates for the upcoming draft, it is projected that Penn State University Nittany Lions left-winger Gavin McKenna, University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks defenceman Keaton Verhoeff and left-winger Ivar Stenberg of Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League will be taken with the top three picks.

Rudolph, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 202 pounds, was rated sixth among North American skaters in the midterm rankings released by NHL Central Scouting on January 12. Various NHL Entry Draft prognosticators have Rudolph potentially creeping in to be selected in the top 10 of the first round.

On Monday, Rudolph was named the WHL’s player of the week for the week ending on Sunday, January 18. He claimed the honour after recording two goals, four assists and a plus-three rating in the plus-minus department helping the Raiders go 3-0 for the week in question.

This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.

McKenna’s departure to NCAA casts shadow over WHL/CHL

Steinke: it's hard for CHL teams to compete against NIL money

Gavin McKenna jets up ice for the Tigers in the WHL final last May.

The WHL and by extension the CHL won’t be able to avoid the storyline of who is not here.

A year ago at this time, superstar left-winger Gavin McKenna was envisioned as the face of the WHL and the CHL for the 2025-26 campaign. Due to the fact his birthday is December 20, 2007, McKenna wasn’t eligible for the NHL Entry Draft held this past June 27 to 28 in Los Angeles, California.

In what appeared originally to be a bonus for hockey’s major junior ranks, McKenna was going to play an 18-year-old season as a member of the Medicine Hat Tigers. The phenom helped the Tigers win the WHL championship last season and appear in the Memorial Cup tournament’s title game falling to the OHL’s London Knights.

He is tabbed as the consensus pick to be selected first overall in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. When his draft selection happens, he will not be announced as a member of the storied Tigers but the NCAA’s Penn State University Nittany Lions Men’s Hockey Team.

McKenna officially committed to joining the Nittany Lions on July 8. Had McKenna turned 18-years-old on or before September 15, he would have been eligible for the NHL Entry Draft held this past June. He would have been selected first overall and would be playing in the NHL this coming season.

This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click right here.

2023 NHL Entry Draft will be memorable for WHL

Connor Bedard went first overall in the NHL Entry Draft.

The 2023 NHL Entry Draft will be remembered as two of the WHL’s best days.

Of course, the 33 players who were selected from the WHL in the NHL Entry Draft on Wednesday and Thursday in Nashville, Tennessee, still have to skate out careers in hockey’s top professional league. With that said, it wouldn’t be a surprise to look back on this year’s NHL Entry Draft a couple of decades from now, and one would reflect on it being a great one for the WHL.

No matter what happens in the future, this NHL Entry Draft will be known as the one where Regina Pats phenom centre Connor Bedard, who will turn 18-years-old on July 17, was selected first overall by the Chicago Blackhawks. The North Vancouver, B.C., product might have been the most watched junior aged player ever over the three campaigns he played with the Pats.

In his three seasons with the Pats, Bedard, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 185 pounds, appeared in 134 career regular season games posting 134 goals and 137 assists for 271 points to go with a plus-48 rating in the plus-minus department. That included recording 71 goals and 72 assists for 143 points to go with a plus-39 rating for this past regular season. His goal and point totals were tops in the WHL and his assist total equaled Prince George Cougars star centre and Saskatoon area product Riley Heidt for the league lead.

Bedard proceeded to have a monster post-season series posting 10 goals, 10 assists and a plus-eight rating in the WHL Playoffs as the Pats fell in seven games in a best-of-seven first round series to the Saskatoon Blades. The Blades claimed a 4-1 victory in a series deciding Game 7 on April 10 at the SaskTel Centre before a sellout crowd of 14,768 spectators.

Connor Bedard had 271 points in 134 WHL career regular season games.

His stock really took off at this past world juniors held in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B. Bedard set numerous Canadian team records helping Canada take the gold medal final 3-2 in overtime over Czechia this past January 5 in Halifax.

Bedard was named the most valuable player at world juniors along with picking up accolades being named the event’s best forward and a tournament all-star.

His tallies for assists (14) and points (23) were new Canadian records for a single world juniors along with setting a new record for points in a tournament by any player aged 18 or younger. In 16 career games played at world juniors, Bedard set new Canadian career records at the event for goals (16) and points (36).

Upon returning to the Pats, Bedard usually played in front of sold out rinks or record crowds wherever he was during the final four months he played in the WHL. There were public appearances in Regina where he would spend six hours signing autographs. Bedard experienced characteristics of fandom that were unheard of for junior hockey and often things you only saw in the NHL in Canadian cities for players like Oilers phenom centre Connor McDavid in Edmonton.

Bedard handled the fandom that came his way in humble and spectacular fashion, which is something most his age wouldn’t be able to do.

Brayden Yager is a first round selection of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Bedard headed a 17-year-old class in the WHL this past season that might be the deepest the circuit had ever seen with that age group. Two potential big future NHL stars from the Saskatoon area include centres Brayden Yager and Heidt.

Yager, who turned 18-years-old in early January, piled up 28 goals and 50 assists in 67 regular season games for the Moose Jaw Warriors in 2022-23 to go with a plus-six rating. He went in the first round and 14^th overall to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Yager just might be one of those star players that leads the Penguins in an era after Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.

Heidt appeared in all 68 regular season games with the Prince George Cougars in 2022-23, and he had 25 goals to go with his 72 assists for 97 points. He was selected in the second round and 64^th overall by the Minnesota Wild.

Due to the fact it is not easy to travel to Prince George, Heidt, who turned 18-years-old in March, wasn’t seen by scouts as much as the other players taken in the NHL Entry Draft. Had he been seen more playing on a team located on the Trans-Canada Highway, he likely would have been selected earlier in the draft.

Tanner Molendyk is a first round draft pick of the Nashville Predators.

One of the most astute picks in the first round might ultimately belonged to the Nashville Predators, when they took Saskatoon Blades defenceman Tanner Molendyk. Molendyk, who turned 18-years-old in February, appeared in 67 regular season games in 2022-23 with the Blades posting nine goals, 28 assists and a plus-31 rating.

He is one of the smoothest skaters among those in the 17-year-old age group this past season, and he has steadily improved as his WHL career has progressed. In the 18 games the Blades played in the 2023 WHL Playoffs, Molendyk posted three goals, five assists and a plus-two rating.

Where Molendyk really turned heads was in the Blades seven game first round series win over the Pats. Molendyk and defensive partner and Blades captain Aidan De La Gorgendiere, who turned 21-years-old in February, were matched up against Bedard every time the Blades coaching staff could get them out against the Pats captain.

While Bedard put up impressive point totals, Molendyk handed that challenge better than anyone could in junior hockey, and he came out of that series with just a minus-one rating despite the offensive numbers put up by Bedard. For anyone that saw Molendyk play in those games, they had to believe he was someone they needed to draft.

The Anaheim Ducks drafted Egor Sidorov in the third round.

Blades import right-winger Egor Sidorov was one of the players from this past season’s 18-year-old class that heard his name called at the NHL Entry Draft. A year ago, Sidorov was passed over in the NHL Entry Draft. He ensured he wasn’t going to be passed over this year.

During the 2022-23 campaign, Sidorov appeared in 53 regular season games with the Blades recording 40 goals, 36 assists and a plus-25 rating. He posted nine goals, 10 assists and a plus-three rating appearing in 16 games in the 2023 WHL Playoffs for the Blades.

Sidorov, who turned 19-years-old on June 18, was selected in the third round and 85^th overall by the Anaheim Ducks.

On the more gritty front, Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Terrell Goldsmith was taken in the fourth round and 102^nd overall by the Arizona Coyotes. Goldsmith, who turned 18-years-old in May, appeared in 58 regular season games with the Raiders in 2022-23 recording three goals, six assists, a minus-six rating and 102 penalty minutes.

Goldsmith is a defensive-defenceman that brings an imposing physical game that is aided by the fact he stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 220 pounds. NHL teams are looking for players to make life miserable in front of their net for opposing players, and Goldsmith can certainly do that.

Terrell Goldsmith was drafted by the Arizona Coyotes.

A number of other players from the WHL taken in this year’s NHL Entry Draft have the potential to be outstanding picks. They include centre Zach Benson of the Winnipeg Ice who are now the Wenatchee Wild going to the Buffalo Sabres in the first round and 13^th overall.

Other astute selections included the Predators selecting centre Kalan Lind of the Red Deer Rebels in the second round and 46^th overall, the Seattle Kraken picking defenceman Caden Price of the Kelowna Rockets in the fourth round and 84^th overall, the San Jose Sharks nabbing defenceman Luca Cagnoni of the Portland Winterhawks in the fourth round and 123^rd overall, the Wild getting defenceman Kalem Parker of the Victoria Royals in the sixth round and 181^st overall and the Washington Capitals selecting left-winger Brett Hyland of the Brandon Wheat Kings in the seventh round and 200^th overall.

One of the coolest moments was seeing the Winnipeg Jets take netminder Thomas Milic of the Seattle Thunderbirds in the fifth round and 151^st overall. Milic, who turned 20-years-old in April, was overlooked due to his lack of size as he stands 6-feet and weighs 179 pounds. NHL clubs often look for a goaltender who stands usually about 6-foot-3 minimum and will pass up smaller goalies including ones that can stop the puck.

Milic backstopped the Thunderbirds to the WHL Championship Series in each of the past two seasons. The Thunderbirds captured the WHL title this past season downing the Ice in five games in a best-of-seven championship series. 

Zach Benson was a first round pick of the Buffalo Sabres.

In the Memorial Cup tournament that determines a CHL champion that was held in Kamloops B.C., Milic backstopped the Thunderbirds to the event’s championship game this past June 4, where they fell 5-0 to the QMJHL champion Quebec Remparts.

On top of his post-season success with the Thunderbirds, Milic backstopped Canada to its gold medal win at this past world juniors.

During the 2022-23 regular season, Milic, who is from Coquitlam, B.C., appeared in 33 games for the Thunderbirds posting a 27-3-2 record, a 2.08 goals against average, a .928 save percentage and four shutouts. He appeared in all of the Thunderbirds 19 games in the WHL Playoffs posting a 16-3 record, a 1.95 goals against average, a .933 save percentage and one shutout.

At the Memorial Cup tournament, Milic played in all the Thunderbirds five games at that event posting a 3-2 record, a 2.41 goals against average and a .915 save percentage.

In Canada’s run to winning gold at this past world juniors, Milic appeared in six games posting a 5-0 record, a 1.76 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Voted the WHL’s Top Goaltender and a first team CHL all-star, Milic has pretty much done almost all you can do at the junior level and more than most will ever do.

Thomas Milic was selected by the Jets in the NHL Entry Draft.

It would have been a crime had he not gotten an NHL shot. It is heartwarming to see he will get his chance to make his NHL dream come true.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Bedard era almost certainly ends for Pats, WHL

It seems certain Connor Bedard will be in the NHL next season.

For Connor Bedard, part of his heart will always be in Regina.

On Wednesday, the Regina Pats 17-year-old phenom centre met the media for a season ending availability as the players cleared out of the locker room. The atmosphere for the scrum for Bedard had the vibe of a farewell.

In his three seasons with the Pats, the North Vancouver, B.C., product appeared in 134 career regular season games posting 134 goals and 137 assists for 271 points to go with a plus-48 rating in the plus-minus department. That included recording 71 goals and 72 assists for 143 points to go with a plus-39 rating for this past regular season. His goal and point totals were tops in the WHL and his assist total equaled Prince George Cougars star centre and Saskatoon area product Riley Heidt for the league lead.

Bedard proceeded to have a monster post-season series posting 10 goals, 10 assists and a plus-eight rating in the WHL Playoffs as the Pats fell in seven games in a best-of-seven first round series to the Saskatoon Blades. The Blades claimed a 4-1 victory in a series deciding Game 7 on Monday at the SaskTel Centre before a sellout crowd of 14,768 spectators.

Connor Bedard topped the WHL with 143 points this season.

Bedard, who was skating through his only appearance in the WHL Playoffs, picked up an assists on the Pats lone goal in Game 7 and was in on 20 of the 26 goals the Pats scored in the series. Barring something unforeseen, Bedard will be the first overall selection in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft set for June 28 to 29 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, and he will be skating in the NHL next season as an 18-year-old.

“I’ve had so much fun these last three years here whether there’s more or not,” said Bedard. “The people are so nice and for me, I love it here.

“I’m super grateful that I got to play here.”

With Bedard in their lineup, the Pats finished sixth overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference and 11^th overall in the league with a 34-30-3-1 record. He was asked if he had second thoughts about not asking for a trade to one of the league’s top five teams, and Bedard said he had always intended to stay in Regina.

Connor Bedard led the WHL with 71 goals this season.

“I don’t have any regrets staying here,” said Bedard, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 185 pounds. “I just love being here and love playing here and I never want to leave.

“I just got so much support from the whole city and everything. To see kids are looking up to me and everything, that is pretty special.”

When it came to dealing with the fact the 2022-23 campaign was over, Bedard said it was still tough to take.

“It is sad no matter what,” said Bedard, who was the first player to be granted exceptional player status to play full time in the WHL at age 15. “Obviously, I’m not sure of the future or anything.

“I’m just kind of saying my thank yous to everyone whether I will be back next year or not. It is always tough to leave a group of guys you were with all year.”

Connor Bedard had 20 points in the Pats seven post-season games.

Due to Bedard’s outstanding season, it came as no surprise on Wednesday when he was named the player of the year for the East Division. He will find out on May 10 if he takes home the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the player of the year for the entire WHL.

At this past world juniors held in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B., Bedard set numerous Canadian team records helping Canada take the gold medal final 3-2 in overtime over Czechia this past January 5 in Halifax.

Bedard was named the most valuable player at world juniors along with picking up accolades being named the event’s best forward and a tournament all-star.

His tallies for assists (14) and points (23) were new Canadian records for a single world juniors along with setting a new record for points in a tournament by any player aged 18 or younger. In 16 career games played at world juniors, Bedard set new Canadian career records at the event for goals (16) and points (36).

Connor Bedard has 271 career regular season points in 134 games.

“What he has done all year is outrageous,” said Pats head coach and general manager John Paddock. “To have 19 points in six games in playoffs like who does that?

“In the last 10 days or so, I’ve had more people from the league just sort of side conversations they had never seen anything like it what he is able to do. I had an NHL scout say to me after the game on Saturday like he has so much determination to get it done. If you want to rate the determination on a scale of 10 like everything else, he is 11.

“It has been great to have a front row seat to see him for this season.”

Bedard has the respect of his foes from the WHL Playoffs in the Blades.

Connor Bedard enjoys playing in Regina.

“I’m such a massive fan of Connor Bedard,” said Blades head coach Brennan Sonne. “He is a winner. He is a worker.”

Sonne had a short friendly chat with Bedard in the handshake line following Game 7. The Blades bench boss told the ultra-talented centre he will be cheering for him.

“We’re both from the lower mainland in B.C.,” said Sonne, who is from Maple Ridge, B.C. “We’ve heard about him since he was 12 and 13.

“He’s done a lot of people proud in the province of British Columbia, and I’ll be continuing to cheer for him the rest of his career. Unless, we are playing against him, and then I will try and shut him down. Huge fan, incredible talent, he is the real deal.”

Blades star left-winger Jake Chiasson, who has a signed NHL entry-level contract with the Edmonton Oilers, said Bedard deserves the praise that comes his way.

Connor Bedard (#98) celebrates one of his 10 post-season goals.

“I have a lot of respect for Connor (Bedard),” said Chiasson, who is from Abbotsford, B.C. “Being from the geographical area, you kind of tend to lean towards those guys a little more than other province guys just with similarities.

“What Connor (Bedard) did for this league is great. It made it exciting.”

Chiasson said a lot of people were looking forward to the series between the Blades and the Pats. The attendance figures backed that observation up as the Pats sold out each of their three home games with 6,499 spectators packing into the Brandt Centre for each of those contests. The Blades drew 47,729 spectators total for their four home dates of the set.

Chiasson said it was a good experience for his Blades to play Bedard and the Pats in the post-season.

“You’ve seen for a while he has been selling out buildings, and I can only imagine how much that does for the league,” said Chiasson. “I’m just really grateful to be able to play against him, to go head-to-head with him.

Connor Bedard is slated to go first in the NHL Entry Draft.

“I’m sure he is going to have a long good career coming up here. It was definitely a moment to look back on playing him in a series of a playoff round.”

Blades hard working right-winger Vaughn Watterodt said he marvels at what Bedard can do on the ice.

“He (Bedard) is amazing,” said Watterodt. “He is a special player.

“He is going to do special things. It was fun to play against him.”

Bedard’s humility once again showed through during his final presser when he was asked about the NHL Draft Lottery, which is set for May 8. That lottery will determine which NHL club will select first overall in the NHL Entry Draft.

“It is a long time until that,” said Bedard.  “For (NHL Draft) lottery day, I will watch it as a fan, and if I am fortunate enough to go one, that’s awesome, but there are so many great players in the draft.”

It was brought up that it seemed inevitable that Bedard will go first overall in the NHL Entry Draft. Bedard tried to play it off that wasn’t a for sure thing.

Connor Bedard skates off the ice after a Game 7 loss on Monday.

“If I get that honour, it would be unreal,” said Bedard. “I’d be super grateful to kind of the people that have helped me with that, but it is a long time away.

“For me, it is just kind of focusing on what I can do now to improve myself as a player and everything. That would be unbelievable, but we will see what happens obviously.”

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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The WHL’s golden season of the 17-year-old

Circuit’s NHL Entry Draft prospects deep in high end talent

Connor Bedard leads the WHL in goals (44), assists (46) and points (90).

The mid to late 1980s era of the WHL is often romantically remembered as a golden era for ultra-passionate followers of the circuit.

That time was viewed as a moment in league history when you seemingly couldn’t miss a game, because every team had a star you had to see. In particular, the quartet of Theo Fleury, Trevor Linden, Mike Modano and Joe Sakic were worth the price of admission alone in any contest they were skating in.

Fleury was piling up points and agitating opponents with the Moose Jaw Warriors. Linden at a young age was a clutch power forward and team leader with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Modano was making magic skating circles around everyone lighting up scoreboards for the Prince Albert Raiders. Sakic was proving he was “no ordinary Joe” filling nets for the Swift Current Broncos.

Of course, all of those players went on to spectacular careers in the NHL becoming overall legends in the game along the way.

With that noted, the current day of WHL might have the most high end depth alone in just one age group that hasn’t been seen since the 1980s. That group would be the 17-year-old players who were born in 2005. Some of those players have already turned 18-years-old due to having a birthday in January or today, February 1.

The unquestioned top player in the current group is Regina Pats captain Connor Bedard. He is a generational talented that is the consensus pick to go first overall in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft. 

Oliver Tulk in action for the Hitmen last season.

The upcoming NHL Entry Draft will be held June 28 to 29 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

Bedard leads the WHL in goals (44), assists (46) and points (90), while posting a plus-30 rating in the plus-minus department in 36 regular season games. 

On Wednesday night, Bedard and the Pats helped the Calgary Hitmen attract 17,223 spectators to their home rink in the Scotiabank Saddledome to mark the highest attendance for a WHL contest this season. The game was shown before a national television audience on TSN.

Bedard didn’t disappoint. The North Vancouver product had a goal and picked up an assist on gritty centre Braxton Whitehead’s second tally of the contest, which forced a 5-5 tie with 33.8 seconds remaining in the third period.

The contest went scoreless through a three-versus-three overtime period to a tiebreaking shootout. Bedard scored the only goal in the shootout on a sick deke to a forehand shot to give the Pats the win in the tiebreaking session and a 6-5 victory in the game.

On the other side, the Hitmen have a fun draft eligible centre to watch in Oliver Tulk, who turned 18-years-old on January 19. Tulk, who plays feisty standing at 5-foot-8 and weighing 172 pounds, had an assist in Wednesday’s setback. He sits second in Hitmen team scoring with 42 points coming off 19 goals and 23 assists in 47 regular season games.

While it is pretty much a certainty Bedard is skating through his final days as a major junior player before joining the NHL next season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he was joined there by some others in the WHL’s current 17-year-old class.

Just a 45-minute drive west on the Trans-Canada Highway, the Pats archrivals in the Moose Jaw Warriors have Saskatoon area product Brayden Yager on their roster. 

Brayden Yager has 56 points this season for the Warriors.

Yager, who turned 18-years-old on January 3, has turned heads as skilled centre that can play both ways. In 49 games with the Warriors, Yager has 20 goals, 36 assists and a plus-six rating.

Before moving to the WHL ranks, Yager played a number of seasons together with another Saskatoon area product in centre Riley Heidt, who is staring in his 17-year-old season with the Prince George Cougars. 

Heidt sits 10^th in the WHL scoring race with 60 points coming off 19 goals and 41 assists in 44 regular season games with the Cougars.

Yager and Heidt applied to get exceptional player status to play in the WHL on a full-time basis as 15-year-olds along with Bedard going into the 2020-21 campaign. 

Bedard was the only one of the three granted exceptional player status, but all three skated as 15-year-olds in the WHL playing a shortened regular season in a bubble style format due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

The Winnipeg Ice, who top the WHL’s overall standings with a 36-6-1 record, have a deep team that is paced by 17-year-old left-winger Zach Benson. Benson sits second in the WHL scoring race with 69 points coming off 27 goals and 42 assists, while posting a plus-43 rating in 42 games.

Out in Kelowna, 17-year-old left-winger Andrew Cristall has been piling up the points for the Rockets. In 36 regular season games, he has 62 points coming off 26 goals and 36 assists to go with a plus-14 rating. 

Zach Benson sits second in WHL scoring this season with 69 points.

Cristall has been out with a lower body injury since suiting up for the Rockets in a 5-1 setback to the Blazers in Kamloops on January 7, but his return status is listed as day-to-day.

On the back end, the Rockets have another good youngster that is a must-see player to watch in 17-year-old defenceman and Saskatoon product Caden Price. 

Price has five goals and 19 assists playing in 44 regular season games with the Rockets. He is rated 30^th among North American Skaters in the NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings.

Along with Price, the Saskatoon Blades have a good young rearguard to watch in 17-year-old Tanner Molendyk. Molendyk has six goals, 20 assists and a plus-26 rating appearing in 45 regular season games for the Blades.

He is rated 36^th among North American Skaters in the NHL Central Scouting Mid-Term Rankings. Molendyk is a sound shutdown defender, and he can wheel up ice and go coast to coast to lead an offensive rush.

The potential is there for any of these draft eligible prospects to end up in the NHL next season depending on which team drafts them and how much improvement they make by the time NHL training camps open. 

Time will tell if this group of young star has the impact in the NHL like Fleury, Linden, Modano and Sakic did.

Tanner Molendyk has 26 points for the Blades this season.

At the moment like in the mid to late 1980s, the WHL is enjoying another golden era where seemingly each team has a must see star.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Bedard no deal means WHL trade rules work

Connor Bedard star status grew at world juniors.

The WHL trade deadline came and went on Tuesday, and Connor Bedard remained a member of the Regina Pats.

That development proved the WHL’s trade rules work.

Following the 2017-18 season, the WHL put in rules that teams aren’t allowed to trade 15-or-16-year-old players who have signed WHL contracts. The only time a 17-year-old player will be allowed to be traded is if that player requests a trade.

The 17-year-old player will have to approach the team’s general manager to ask for a trade, and a team won’t be able to make the first move asking a 17-year-old player to waive his no trade clause.

The rule changes were made in response to the large number of trades that were made involving younger players leading to the WHL’s trade deadline of January 10, 2018. There were cases where 15-year-old players were being dealt before they had a chance to play a regular season game with the club that originally drafted them.

The spirit of the rules were to allow those players the chance to play with the team that drafted them and not have to worry about changing schools, while they were still in high school. The request for trade provision was put in to allow players who felt they were slipping through the cracks with regards to a lack of playing time to get a fresh start with a new club. A reality of junior hockey is that happens.

What goes against those roles is trying to convince a 17-year-old phenom to be traded to get a huge return of assets.

Bedard’s presence in the WHL created the biggest challenge to those rules. Coming into the WHL for the 2020-21 season, Bedard was the first player to be granted exceptional player status to play in the WHL at age 15.

Connor Bedard leads the WHL in scoring

Now at age 17, Bedard, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 185 pounds, has lived up to every bit of the tag of being a generational talent. His star status grew that much larger at this past world juniors, which concluded on January 5 with Bedard’s Team Canada side downing Czechia 3-2 in overtime in the gold medal final at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, N.S.

For that event co-hosted in Halifax and Moncton, N.B., Bedard topped the tourney in goals (nine), assists (14), points (23) and had the best plus-minus (+13). The North Vancouver, B.C., product was named the most valuable player at world juniors along with picking up accolades being named the event’s best forward and a tournament all-star.

His tallies for assists and points were new Canadian records for a single world juniors along with setting a new record for points in a tournament by any player aged 18 or younger. In 16 career games played at world juniors, Bedard set new Canadian career records at the event for goals (16) and points (36).

On WHL trade deadline day, Bedard was leading the league in scoring, and the Pats sat seventh overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference holding the conference’s second last playoff position, if the regular season ended that day.

Before leaving to join Canada’s world junior team, Bedard spoke to the media in Regina on December 7, 2022, and he said he wanted to remain with the Pats and play the entirety of his junior hockey career in Regina. Right there, that should have been the end of the story on the trade front.

Still, that didn’t seem to be enough for way too many WHL fans, WHL followers and media types who cover hockey at both the junior and professional levels. Chatter on social media and sports talk shows was that Bedard should be traded to a team near the top of the WHL’s overall standings that was in better position to contend for a league title and the CHL championship trophy - the Memorial Cup - for a king’s ransom of assets.

Often, those comments came with complete silence over the rules regarding trading high school aged players in the WHL.

Connor Bedard was the MVP of world juniors.

There were people that didn’t take Bedard or Pats head coach and general manager John Paddock, who said repeatedly he wasn’t going to trade Bedard, at their word. There were people out there who thought both Bedard and Paddock were lying and would believe what they saw if Bedard was indeed trade or not traded.

There were people who thought Pats management should be unscrupulous and convince Bedard he needed to be traded to a club at or near the top of the WHL overall standings to get a massive haul in assets and that the WHL office should look the other way when this all goes down. Due to the fact numerous unscrupulous things go down in all walks of life these days, there were people who believed that Bedard would be traded hook or crook.

Those types of talks or thoughts speak more about the people who envisioned things going down in an unscrupulous manner as opposed to Bedard and Paddock.

In Bedard’s short career in hockey and the seemly the six decades long career in the game of the 68-year-old Paddock, both have been straight shooters. It could be argued that Paddock is as straight of a shooter as you will ever find in the game of hockey.

Bedard wanted to remain with the Pats and the spirit of the rules in the WHL with regards to trading 17-year-old players was respected. This was a big win for the league, because it shows the rules that were put in place work.

Following Friday’s action in the WHL, the Pats sport a 20-19-1-1 and still sit seventh overall in the Eastern Conference. Bedard still leads the WHL in scoring totally 75 points coming off 34 goals and 41 assists to go with a plus-21 rating in 30 appearances with the Pats.

On Friday, NHL Central Scouting’s Mid-Term Rankings were released, and Bedard was listed as the top prospect among North American skaters for the upcoming NHL Entry Draft, which will be held at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, from June 28 to 29. Barring something unforeseen, Bedard will be the first player selected in that draft.

Connor Bedard is likely skating in his final months as a WHLer.

Until then, Bedard makes the Pats a dangerous team. Even if the Pats make the WHL Playoffs with one of the bottom two seeds in the Eastern Conference, they can be a bracket buster. Bedard has the potential to will the Pats past superior opposition.

If Bedard is able to do that, it might go down as a bigger accomplishment than Lionel Messi willing Argentina to a World Cup title in soccer, which is known as football outside of Canada and the United States, this past December.

Over the long term, the Pats will reap benefits as being the only junior team Bedard played for before joining the NHL.

Overall, the right thing happened, when Bedard remained a member of the Pats at the WHL trade deadline. Again, fans of all type should get out to the rink and enjoy the Bedard phenom while it is still in the WHL.

Bedard bashes Blades in Pats 7-4 win

Connor Bedard, right, had five points for the Pats on Friday.

Not even any Friday the 13^th hexes could stop Connor Bedard.

The Regina Pats 17-year-old phenom centre had another spectacular night as the Pats posted a 7-4 victory over the visiting Saskatoon Blades on Friday night. Bedard recorded a hat trick that including the winning goal, two assists and a plus-four rating in the plus-minus department in the Pats victory, which saw a season high crowd of 5,651 spectators turn out at the Brandt Centre.

With the five-point outburst, Bedard was able to surpass 200 career regular season points during his time in the WHL. In 107 career regular season games, Bedard has 97 goals and 106 assists for 203 points to go with a plus-30 rating.

Zack Stringer, Steel Quiring, Braxton Whitehead and Borya Valis all netted singles for the Pats. Czech import defenceman Stanislav Svozil collected four assists for Regina.

Trevor Wong, Egor Sidorov, Brandon Lisowsky and Tanner Molendyk replied with singles for the Blades. Wong has a pair of assists to go with his goal.

Drew Sim stopped 21 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Pats (20-19-1-1). Ethan Chadwick turned away 18-of-25 shots taking the setback in net for the Blades (26-8-2-1).

The two sides were tied 1-1 after 20 minutes, and the Pats held a 3-2 advantage after two periods.

The Pats return to action when they host the Portland Winterhawks (28-7-2-1) at 7 p.m. at the Brandt Centre.

The Blades are back at it on Saturday when they host the WHL leading Seattle Thunderbirds (30-6-1-1) at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

Thunderbirds slip past spirited Raiders 3-2

Ryder Ritchie had a pair of assists for the Raiders on Friday.

The Seattle Thunderbirds allowed star defenceman Nolan Allan to come out a winner on his return to Prince Albert.

On Friday night playing in front of a standing room crowd of 2,602 spectators at the 2,580 Art Hauser Centre, the Thunderbirds gutted out a 3-2 victory against a host Raiders squad that put in a spirited effort. Allan, who is a 19-year-old alternate captain with the Thunderbirds, started the current season as the Raiders captain before being dealt to Seattle in a blockbuster trade on November 16, 2022.

Allan appeared in seven regular season games for the Raiders in their 2018-19 WHL championship season as an associate player call up before joining the club full time in 2019-20. In 162 career regular season games with the Raiders, Allan recorded 14 goals, 49 assists and a plus-four rating in the plus-minus department.

The Davidson product, who helped Canada win gold at this past world juniors, was held without a point on Friday but was still named the game’s third star.

Overage star left-winger Kyle Crnkovic netted his 20^th goal of the season and recorded an assist to pace the Thunderbirds. Brad Lambert and Jordan Gustafson recorded singles for Seattle.

Lambert, who is a centre from Finland, was playing in his first career WHL game after being assigned to the Thunderbirds by the NHL’s Winnipeg Jets. He had been playing with the Jets AHL affiliate in the Manitoba Moose.

Niall Crocker and Sloan Stanick replied for the Raiders. Ryder Ritchie, who is a 16-year-old rookie left-winger, picked up assists on both Prince Albert goals. In 33 appearances with the Raiders, Ritchie has 11 goals and 14 assists.

Thomas Milic stopped 26 shots to pick up the win in goal for the Thunderbirds (30-6-1-1). Max Hildebrand turned away 31 shots to take the setback in net for the Raiders (14-23-3).

After a scoreless opening 20 minutes, the two sided were tied 1-1 after the second before the Thunderbirds squeaked out the victory.

The Raiders hit the road to take on the Oil Kings (6-34-1) on Saturday in Edmonton (7 p.m. local time, Rogers Place).

The Thunderbirds are also back in action on Saturday as they take on the Blades (26-8-2-1) in Saskatoon (7 p.m., SaskTel Centre).

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Bedard should be allowed to stay with Pats

Connor Bedard jets up ice for the Pats in a game in April.

If Connor Bedard wants to stay with the Regina Pats, he should be allowed to stay with the world’s oldest major junior franchise.

Since the start of the current season, there has been no end to the speculation that the Pats should trade the phenom centre for what would be a massive haul of players and WHL Prospects Draft selections. That speculation has increased due to the fact the Pats appear to be your typical middle of the road post-season team.

Without Bedard on Friday night, the Pats downed the Raiders in Prince Albert 3-2 for third straight win to improve to 15-12-1-1.

Bedard, who is the Pats captain, is a generational talent and was one of a handful of players to be granted exceptional player status to play in the major junior ranks at age 15.

 During an abbreviated 2020-21 regular season, Bedard at age 15 suited up in 15 games for the Pats posting 12 goals, 16 assists and a plus-nine rating in the plus-minus category. The 2020-21 campaign was an abbreviated one due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

In 105 career regular season contests with the Pats, Bedard has recorded 90 goals, 102 assists and a plus-23 rating. He is currently at the selection camp for Canada’s world junior team and is pretty much a lock to be on that squad again to play in the world juniors that start December 26 and run through to January 5, 2023 in Halifax, N.S., and Moncton, N.B.

Bedard, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 185 pounds, helped Canada win gold at the last world juniors that were held this past August in Edmonton. He is the consensus pick to be selected first overall in the next NHL Entry Draft, which will be held at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee, from June 28 to 29.

Following the first overall selection, Bedard will be signed to an NHL entry-level contract and be playing in the NHL full time as an 18-year-old. Only something unforeseen would see that chain of events not play out.

Bedard handles himself so well on and off the ice with a maturity seemingly beyond his years that one tends to forget the North Vancouver, B.C., product is still 17-years-old. He isn’t old enough to vote in a political election or have an alcoholic drink legally.

Yet, it seems people already expect him to be Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux, when they were in their prime as NHL players. At the moment, Bedard is still technically an amateur hockey player. While Bedard has a tonne of maturity for his age, he still deserves to have some leeway to be your typical 17-year-old who is finishing a final year of high school.

When Bedard met the media in Regina on Wednesday before departing for the selection camp of Canada’s world junior team, he said he wanted to remain with the Pats and play the entirety of his junior hockey career in Regina. Right there, that should be the end of the story.

Connor Bedard has 192 points in 105 career WHL regular season games.

If Bedard wants to stay in Regina and is able to stay there, it would meet the spirit of the rules that are currently in place in the WHL when it comes to making trades.

Following the 2017-18 season, the WHL put in rules that teams aren’t allowed to trade 15-or-16-year-old players who have signed WHL contracts. The only time a 17-year-old player will be allowed to be traded is if that player requests a trade.

The 17-year-old player will have to approach the team’s general manager to ask for a trade, and a team won’t be able to make the first move asking a 17-year-old player to waive his no trade clause.

The rule changes were made in response to the large number of trades that were made involving younger players leading to the WHL’s trade deadline of January 10, 2018. There were cases where 15-year-old players were being dealt before they had a chance to play a regular season game with the club that originally drafted them.

The spirit of the rules were to allow those players the chance to play with the team that drafted them and not have to worry about changing schools, while they were still in high school. The request for trade provision was put in to allow players who felt they were slipping through the cracks with regards to a lack of playing time to get a fresh start with a new club. A reality of junior hockey is that happens.

There are fans out there that believe somehow Bedard should be convinced that he wants to be traded to a club that is viewed to be a contender for the WHL championship and a CHL title, which is awarded to the winner of the Memorial Cup tournament. Often talk involves Bedard being moved to the Memorial Cup hosting Kamloops Blazers, the WHL leading Winnipeg Ice, Red Deer Rebels, Portland Winterhawks or Seattle Thunderbirds.

There are some fans that say if Bedard doesn’t want to be traded to a contender that has a major shot to win a Memorial Cup that there is something wrong with him and maybe he shouldn’t be the first overall selection in the NHL Entry Draft.

Once again, Bedard is 17-years-old and he is still not a professional hockey player at the moment. If he wants to remain with the Pats, that should be the end of the story.

He should be allowed to be a 17-year-old in some ways, because he will have lots of time in his life to deal with the business aspect of hockey. As a generational talent, it is unlikely he will be passed up as the first selection of the upcoming NHL Entry Draft.

Back on November 30, Pats head coach and general manager John Paddock got old school confrontational and testy with the media in Kamloops regarding questions about trading Bedard. Once it was clear Bedard wasn’t going to be traded, things calmed down and he had a pretty good discussion with the media.

Frankly, Paddock should have the freedom to go the old school route of being confrontational and testy with the media if he believes that is what is needed if Bedard doesn’t want to be traded and that question comes up. Over the years, Paddock has often been viewed by former players as the best coach they’ve ever hard, and Bedard is fortunate to have Paddock as his junior head coach and general manager.

With the way the WHL trade rules are, the only exception that could come up with the trading of a younger player would be to deal them to their hometown club, if their parent is dealing with a critical illness. Back in the 2006-07 season, then Pats general manager Brent Parker and then Saskatoon Blades head coach and general manager Lorne Molleken made one of the classiest trades ever involved left-winger and Saskatoon product Derek Hulak, who was 16-years-old at the time.

Connor Bedard said he wants to stay with the Pats.

Derek’s mom, Alina, was battling cancer and ultimately passed away on March 27, 2007. Derek was playing with the Pats at the time, and Parker and Molleken ensure he was dealt to the Blades partway through that season to allow him to be closer to his mom.

If that type of situation came up again, you can be sure WHL office and the league’s member teams wouldn’t stand in the way of that type of trade being made to help a player off the ice.

In Bedard’s case, he doesn’t have to deal with anything like that. If his heart is set on staying with the Pats, that is the team he should be rejoining once his time with Canada’s entry at the upcoming world juniors concludes. That would also show the WHL’s current trade rules are doing what they are supposed to be doing too.

Benson nets first hat trick in Ice win, other notes

Zach Benson had a hat trick for the Ice on Friday.

Zach Benson had a milestone night powering the Winnipeg Ice to victory.

On Friday night playing before 1,621 spectators at the Wayne Fleming Arena in Winnipeg, the 17-year-old centre recorded his first career WHL hat trick. Benson also picked up an assist as the Ice, who are rated third in the CHL Top 10 Rankings, doubled up the visiting Spokane Chiefs 6-3.

On the season, Benson, who is eligible for the upcoming NHL Entry Draft, leads the Ice in scoring with 43 points coming on 18 goals and 25 assists to go with a plus-26 rating in the plus-minus department in 27 games.

Conor Geekie had a pair of goals and an assist for the Ice, while import centre Vladislav Shilo potted a single into an empty net for the Winnipeg side.

Tommaso De Luca had a pair of goals for the Chiefs, while Carter Streek had a single.

Daniel Hauser made 25 saves to pick up the win in goal for the Ice, who top the WHL’s overall standings with a 24-4 mark. Cooper Michaluk turned away 38-of-43 shots for the Chiefs, who fell to 5-19-0-1.

The Chiefs return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Brandon to take on the Wheat Kings (11-15-3).

The Ice get back at it on Sunday, when they host the Pats.

• The Moose Jaw Warriors hammered the visiting Calgary Hitmen 9-2 on Friday night at the Moose Jaw Events Centre. Import left-winger Martin Rysavy had a huge night for the Warriors recording two goals, three assists and a plus-four rating in the plus-minus department.
• Tyson Greenway scored 21 seconds into overtime as the Tri-City Americans slipped past the visiting Prince George Cougars 4-3 at the Toyota Centre in Kennewick, Wash. The Cougars led 3-1 early in the third period, before the Americans rallied back to take the game. Netminder Ty Young turned away 48 shots to take the setback in goal for the Cougars.
• On Friday, I had new content appear on the Howe Happenings blog that supports the Gordie Howe Sports Complex. I put together a feature on University of Saskatchewan Huskies place kicker and punter David Solie, who recently signed with the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders. Solie has worked at the Complex for a number of years and made a tonne of good relationships there over that time. The piece on Solie can found by clicking right here. I also created a photo roundup that focuses on showing the Indoor Training Centre getting into its busy season, and that piece can be found by clicking right here.

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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