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The accolades continue for Regina Pats captain Connor Bedard.
On Wednesday, the WHL announced the 17-year-old had been named the East Division player of the year for a second consecutive season.
Bedard led the WHL in goals (71) and points (143) in the 2022-23 regular season and tied for the league lead in assists (72) in just 57 games. He also led the league in points per game (2.51) and goals per game (1.24), and finished in a tie for first with 11 game-winning goals.
The product of North Vancouver, B.C., tied for the longest point-scoring streak in the WHL this season, earning at least one point in 35 straight games. He had 44 goals and 46 assists in that span.
Bedard tied former Kamloops Blazers star Rob Brown (1985-86) for the most points per game by a 17-year-old in WHL history, and recorded the third-most goals and points by any under-18 player in league history.
In the post-season, Bedard had 10 goals and 20 points in seven games as the Pats fell to the Saskatoon Blades.
Bedard is the top-ranked North American skater for the 2023 NHL draft.
It was the second award in as many days for a Pats player. On Tuesday, Stanislav Svozil was named the East Division’s top defenceman.
The 20-year-old product of Prerov, Czechia, ranked first among WHL defencemen in power-play assists (36), was second in assists (67) and points per game (1.39), and was third in points (78) in 56 games played. In the playoffs, he added four goals and nine assists.
