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Connor Bedard keeps showing why teams need to look out for No. 1.
On Friday, the Regina Pats’ exceptional 17-year-old forward was named the top-ranked North American skater for the 2023 draft by NHL Central Scouting.
Later that night, Bedard provided a hat trick and two assists as the Pats (20-19-1-1) beat the Saskatoon Blades 7-4 in WHL action at the Brandt Centre.
Since returning to the Pats from his MVP performance at the world junior tournament, Bedard has seven goals and 11 points in just two games. He now has a WHL-best 75 points in just 30 games.
The game Friday had a paid attendance of 5,651 — the largest crowd for a Pats home game this season.
“It’s been nice. A lot of people have been here supporting us, and to get two wins, especially against (Saskatoon), that’s a top team and we felt like we had to start beating those guys and we need to cement ourselves as one of the top teams,” said Bedard, who had four goals and two assists in Regina’s 6-2 win over the Calgary Hitmen on Sunday.
“It’s definitely a good start.”
Pats assistant coach Ken Schneider said all of Bedard’s game is fun to watch, from his shot to his ability to pass to getting bouncing pucks under control.
“There’s just isn’t more than one Connor Bedard in the Western Hockey League,” Schneider said. “Thank goodness I get to watch him every night from the same bench.”
For the Blades (26-8-2-1), head coach Brennan Sonne only had a few words to describe how the game went.
“Discipline, puck management, defending — that’s the areas we need to address,” Sonne said. “You can’t take five penalties against the power play or those players, it’s as simple as that.”
Regina scored twice on five power-play chances and also added a shorthanded goal. Saskatoon scored twice on three opportunities with the man advantage.
The Pats scored first in the contest with Bedard getting the opening goal while on the power play. The Regina captain earned a point in his 29th straight WHL game.
But the Blades answered back quickly, getting a goal from Tanner Wong 28 seconds after Bedard’s tally.
In the second period, Zack Stringer scored on the power play for Regina and then 38 seconds later, Steel Quiring scored his first goal as a Pat.
He was acquired at the Tuesday trade deadline from the Everett Silvertips for a fourth-round pick in the 2026 draft.
“It felt great. It has been a while since I scored a goal — since before Christmas — so to get one early and get one here, I had some family in the building. It felt great and even better to get the win,” Quiring said.
Saskatoon was able to get within a goal late in the second frame, with Egor Sidorov scoring on the power play with just 7.8 seconds left.
In the third, the Pats got a two-on-one opportunity while shorthanded, with Bedard getting a pass across to Braxton Whitehead, whose shot hit the back of the net. The assist was Bedard’s 200th career WHL point in 107 regular-season games.
Bedard added two goals in the third and assisted on a Borya Valis goal, giving Bedard 203 career points.
Brandon Lisowsky and Tanner Molendyk added the other Blades goals.
The Pats have now won two in a row and will take on the Portland Winterhawks (28-7-2-1) at the Brandt Centre on Saturday.
Saskatoon is to host the Seattle Thunderbirds (30-6-1-1) on Saturday.
