FRIDAY COMMENTARY – YOU CAN’T HAVE IT ALL
(Listen daily for the Rod Pedersen Commentary on Cat Country 98 & Rock 98.5 FM)
It really all begins today.
Canada’s World Junior camp opens in Moncton and again, Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats will pick up the sword and continue his assault on the record book.
Beyond that, he’ll try to help lead Canada to a second consecutive gold medal when the tournament faces off in Halifax on Boxing Day.
Connor is the latest of a long list of Regina Pats who have represented Canada at the world’s most famous hockey tournament.
For the longest time, the Pats held the record for sending the most players to the World Juniors out of any CHL team and haven’t heard that’s changed.
To say Bedard’s special is an understatement. He’s scored 192 points in 105 games with the Pats and is still only 17 years old.
The North Vancouver product is the youngest Dub player to score 50 goals and the youngest player ever to score four goals in a game at the World J’s.
It’s quite an accomplishment for a kid who hasn’t even been drafted yet and the whereabouts of where he’ll go #1 this June will be as hotly-debated this Christmas as the World Junior games themselves.
And as always, the Canadian roster has been a bit of a moving target right up till camp. Regina’s Cole Sillinger won’t be there as Columbus wants to keep him in the Big Show. Last year’s Canadian hero, Mason McTavish, won’t be there either as Anaheim’s keeping him.
However NHL’ers Dylan Guenther of Arizona and Shane Wright of Seattle will be in the Maritimes this Holiday season, thus guaranteeing must-see TV.
Unfortunately Russia star Matvie Michkov – considered Bedard’s biggest competition for the #1 selection – will miss another World Juniors as Russia continues to be banned from IIHF events for obvious political reasons.
The only ones upset about that decision are the scouts, who want to see the pair go head-to-head.
Hey, you can’t have it all.
That’s today’s Rod Pedersen Commentary
(The Rod Pedersen Show airs daily on Game+ TV, YouTube Live and WQEE Radio)
If anybody thinks Conor has competition for the #1 pick I guarantee this. Those same scouts work for the routine dumpster fire garbage organizations that litter the NHL landscape. I need to see a few more games of his, but here is where I stand. Guys from my generation speak of Dale Derkatch with reverence as that is the gold standard for Regina Pats. His bad luck was the Era and only 21 NHL teams. Had he had 30 teams and would be happy to play 4 minutes and traded every 18 months over 18 years he would have made… Read more »