Seattle Kraken defenseman Ryker Evans has not been surprised by the impact Chicago’s Connor Bedard, the No. 1 overall pick in this summer’s NHL draft, has made as a rookie.
Evans got to experience Bedard every day in juniors when they were teammates on the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats in 2021-22.
“Well, it’s pretty hard not to see him,” Evans said. “He’s having so much success and it’s pretty cool to see. You kind of knew he was going to be able to succeed like he has so far.”
Bedard leads all rookies with 24 points (12 goals, 12 assists) through 28 games, entering Thursday’s matchup at Seattle with Evans and the Kraken.
Evans, recently recalled from Coachella Valley of the American Hockey League, has played in the past four games. He got his first NHL point in a 4-0 victory against visiting Florida on Tuesday as the Kraken snapped an eight-game losing streak (0-6-2).
With Seattle leading 1-0 early in the third period, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare won a faceoff in the Panthers’ zone. The puck went back to Evans at the left point, and he skated along the boards and behind the net before finding an open Bellemare in the low slot for a one-timer that gave the Kraken some breathing room.
“Obviously, this kid is going to be here a long enough time,” Bellemare said of Evans. “So, it was fun to see him (get a point), and he thanked me (for putting it) in, which was a funny thing.”
Bellemare and fellow fourth-liner Kailer Yamamoto each had a goal and an assist for the Kraken.
“Those guys were going good,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said of the fourth line, which included Devin Shore. “The way the matchups landed and ended up, they didn’t have a ton of minutes, but every time over the boards, they were going good. We’ve seen a little bit of chemistry grow with that line, so that’s not just a one-night thing.”
Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord stopped 24 shots for his first career NHL shutout.
“Obviously, we needed (the victory) pretty bad,” Daccord said. “So, it was great for the team to play for 60 minutes.”
There was a sense of relief in the Kraken locker room after the game.
“I don’t feel like out of the eight (losses) we deserved zero, or the two points that we got,” Bellemare said. “I think that we played better than what the record showed.”
Despite Bedard opening the scoring, the Blackhawks lost 4-1 at Edmonton on Tuesday.
“The first (period) was not bad, but when you kind of keep it a track meet against them, it’s obviously hard with those guys,” Bedard said. “We created a bit and I thought it wasn’t terrible, but definitely some things to clean up.
“They have the top two players in the world (Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl) and maybe you calm it down a little bit more and not give as many rush chances.”
One thing Bedard has been working on is his faceoffs, as he’s winning just 40.9 percent of them. Evans said he expects that to improve, as he saw the same thing happen when Bedard started playing in juniors.
“Coming off especially the (WHL), there are some older guys, especially when he was 15 and you have to take draws, they just know some different things that he probably didn’t know,” Evans said. “So to see him learn, and he’s obviously able to adapt and now he knows he’s taking draws against men, and he’s doing very well.”
–Field Level Media