Chicago Blackhawks’ Connor Bedard’s 20-goal season puts him in another strong group of franchise icons

Connor Bedard scoring 20 goals in back-to-back seasons in his NHL career has put him in some good company throughout the Chicago Blackhawks organization. He joined Eddie Olczyk as the only other teenager in franchise history to have multiple 20-goal seasons before turning 20.

Bedard still sits at the 20-goal mark in the campaign with eight games left to play. Three of those contests will be at home, and one of them will take place Wednesday night against the Colorado Avalanche in a nationally televised battle on TNT.

The young phenom has 38 assists on the year to give him 58 points in 74 games, nearly matching his point total from his rookie season. A jaw injury that Bedard suffered in early-January of his Calder Trophy campaign had him miss 14 games, yet he still found a way to score 22 goals and collected 39 assists in 68 games.

Bedard has had his ups and downs this season, but he has still found a way to produce for a team that is currently in second-to-last place in the NHL with the hopes of securing the top pick in the draft. The rights to land Michael Misa of the Saginaw Sprit in the OHL as a running mate for Bedard is a possibility for Chicago, and it would take the team to new heights.

It is important to acknowledge all that Bedard has accomplished in the first two years of his career, no matter how rough things have been for the Chicago Blackhawks organization. He has been added to another group of well-respected players in franchise history with his 20-goal sophomore season.

Connor Bedard joins another list of Chicago Blackhawks icons

Bedard has officially joined Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Alex DeBrincat, and Artemi Panarin as the fifth Blackhawk in the last 20 years to start his career with consecutive 20-goal seasons.

︎ https://t.co/YLxnjdKQ5m

Connor Bedard joins Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Artemi Panarin and Alex DeBrincat as the fifth Blackhawk in the last 20 years to start his career with consecutive 20-goal seasons. pic.twitter.com/yh04NkqOM3

— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 26, 2025

Toews and Kane were the catalysts for Chicago’s dynasty in the 2010s. The two were inseparable throughout their times in the Windy City, and the new era of Blackhawks hockey without them around has a different vibe to get used to for fans.

Panarin and DeBrincat were great additions to the organization while they were looking to continue their deep playoff runs in the late 2010s. Neither one of them could achieve glory with the franchise, but both were electric to watch and complemented guys like Kane and Toews extremely well.

The sky is the limit for Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks

The Blackhawks’ roster continues to get younger and younger as the weeks move on this season. Six of the eight first-round draft picks made by general manager Kyle Davidson over the last three years have skated in the NHL this year, and more help is on the way over the next year.

This draft will be huge for the Blackhawks once again, with their top choice hopefully being a forward who can add to this budding young core. They also hold the Leafs’ first-round pick, which is just another throw at the dartboard.

If the front office can pull off a big free agent signing like Mitch Marner, things could take off quickly in this rebuild. The pieces are beginning to come together for Bedard to play freely in a way he hasn’t been able to before in his NHL career. This summer will be huge in taking that next step.