Captain Connor: Pats hand ‘C’ to Bedard

Connor Bedard has led the Regina Pats in scoring before.

Now he’ll have to be a real leader for the WHL team; he was named its captain Thursday.

“Ever since I got drafted (in 2020), this was definitely a long-term goal,” Bedard said during a media conference at the Brandt Centre. “We’ve got (a list of captains) on the wall over there and you see those names and it was pretty crazy to me when I walked in today and saw that.

“It’s a huge honour and I couldn’t be more excited.”

At 17 years two months, Bedard becomes the youngest captain in Pats history. The previous record was held by Barret Jackman; he was 17 years 11 months old when he was named Regina’s captain on Feb. 1, 1999.

Bedard succeeds Logan Nijhoff, who exhausted his junior eligibility last season. An alternate captain in 2021-22, Bedard is eager to be the team’s leader.

“To have the opportunity to be a captain at this age, it’s not really about age,” he said. “It’s just mutual respect between us and teammates and the whole room. It’s just exciting for me whether you’re 17, 18, 19 or 20.”

The first time in his career that Bedard wore a captain’s ‘C’ was at the under-18 world championship in Germany. The product of North Vancouver, B.C., noted a lot of the teams he played on growing up didn’t hand out letters, so he hasn’t had many opportunities before.

“I’ve always been a younger guy too, so I think trying to be a leader with older guys is always something I’ve focused on,” Bedard said. “To finally have it for the whole season is super-exciting, and I couldn’t be more happy.”

Bedard was the first WHL player ever to be granted exceptional status, which meant he could play fulltime in the league as a 15-year-old. All he did was score 12 goals and add 16 assists in 15 games to lead Regina in scoring in the COVID-related bubble in the Queen City.

As a 16-year-old, he got off to a relatively slow start — he had 11 goals and 18 points in the Pats’ first 22 games — but went on a tear over Regina’s final 40 regular-season games.

He had 40 goals and 42 assists in that span and eventually set team records for goals in a season by a 16-year-old (51) and points in a season by a 16-year-old (100). He also became the youngest player in WHL history to score at least 50 goals in a season.

Bedard, who was named the East Division’s player of the year, is widely viewed as the No. 1 prospect for the 2023 NHL draft.

Cole Dubinsky certainly feels Bedard got what he deserved Thursday.

“As soon as he came in, he has been a professional in the sense of always coming to the rink every day to work, never taking a day off,” said the 19-year-old Dubinsky, who was named an alternate captain along with Luke Bateman and Braxton Whitehead.

“He doesn’t have to talk as much as some people might. He just leads by example — and he has done that since he was a 15-year-old kid in the bubble playing with us. A guy like that, it’s well-deserved what he’s got.”

Dubinsky is wearing a letter for the first time in his WHL career. He too is grateful for the opportunity.

“Obviously you’ve got to use your voice sometimes, but leading by example almost goes a longer way,” he said. “That’s just what I’ve learned over the years.

“I’ve seen a lot of guys come through and had a lot of great leaders in front of me. I’m happy to take a step and be one of those guys.”

Pats head coach-general manager John Paddock said he felt Bedard has been preparing for this moment for years. The longtime hockey man saw the way the young star did his work and had a sense Bedard would wear the ‘C’ at some point.

“He’ll feel comfortable speaking at times — as will the other guys — but I think it’s (a case of) you set an example with how you act on and off the ice and he will set a good example,” Paddock said. “And these other guys will as well.”

Bedard will act as the Pats’ captain for the first time Friday when they entertain the Moose Jaw Warriors at the Brandt Centre on the opening night of the regular season. Game time is set for 7 p.m.

— With files from 980 CJME’s Jamie Nye