Blackhawks' Connor Bedard speaks out ahead of 1st away game vs. hometown Canucks

11/16/2024 05:03 PM

The Chicago Blackhawks are gearing up for an intense cross-conference road matchup against the Vancouver Canucks. Saturday night’s contest is significant, as second-year star center Connor Bedard will not be far from his hometown. Bedard spoke about the popularity of the game’s ticket amongst his friends and family before the matchup:

"It's not crazy but I'll be paying to play for a night," Bedard said, via NHL.com "No, but it'll be good to have some people there."

Fans have looked forward to Connor Bedard’s return since he was drafted by the Blackhawks first overall in 2023. Clint Colebourn, who first coached Bedard in 2016, said it is great to finally see him play in front of hometown fans, as he did not get to in 2023.

"Last year really (stunk)," Colebourn said, via NHL.com. "I know so many people who bought tickets for all of that and it was just an unfortunate situation. I just think it's cool for him to be able to play in the NHL in front of his friends and family and get home and actually experience that."

Bedard is a North Vancouver native, and Steve Marr, who coached Bedard with the West Vancouver Warriors, agreed with the description of North Vancouver being “Vancouver Light.”

"That's a perfect way to describe it," Marr told NHL.com. "Being in North Van, you don't feel like you're not in Vancouver in terms of, if you want to go downtown, it's not that hard. But there's a bit of a small-town feel to North Van and I think part of that is just that you are kind of protected by the mountains and I think that's the safeguard between the small town and a giant city."

The energy for Saturday’s Blackhawk-Canucks game will certainly impress. Nevertheless, Chicago wants to stay focused and get a win, especially after their Nov. 14 Seattle Kraken loss.

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