Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Auston Matthews are all still in the prime of their respective careers, but the next wave of NHL superstars aren’t content to wait their turn. Connor Bedard, Macklin Celebrini and Leo Carlsson have announced their arrival with authority this season.
In the 2023 NHL Draft, Bedard and Carlsson were the top two picks, respectively. One year later, Celebrini was the prize of the draft lottery, going No. 1 overall. None of them can legally drink in the United States, but they’re already holding their own against the best players in the world.
Celebrini, after his second hat trick of the season, is up to 30 points. That puts him in a tie with the Oilers’ McDavid for second in the league. Bedard, following his second hat trick already this season, ranks fourth. That leaves Carlsson, who is really slacking, in eighth place with 26 points. That’s impressive for a trio of players aged 20 or younger, but their impact goes much deeper than simply filling up the scoresheet.
Each player is the crown jewel of his respective franchise’s rebuild, something that brings the hefty weight of expectations and pressure. To this point, they’ve borne that burden extremely well and flourished in the process.
The Chicago Blackhawks, Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks have been moribund franchises for years now, but these young superstars have instilled hope as all three teams aim to throw a wrench into the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs picture.
Young stars delivering on the hype
In the case of Bedard, he was billed as the best prospect since McDavid entered the league in 2015. He certainly looked the part as a rookie in 2023-24, posting 61 points in 68 games and winning the Calder Trophy. Last season, however, Bedard regressed on a horrific Blackhawks team. He totaled 67 points in 82 games, and his defensive metrics were cause for concern.
Now in his third season, Bedard, 20, has taken a clear leap and looks like a far more confident player than at any point in 2024-25. It’s just another reminder that development, even for the best prospects, is rarely linear.
This season, Bedard is making opponents look foolish on a consistent basis. His 4.33 points per 60 minutes are seventh in the NHL, per Natural Stat Trick, and he’s tied for fifth in the league with 16 five-on-five points. He isn’t simply feasting on big power play minutes.
Bedard’s combination of intelligence, vision and his elite shot make him a threat to make a play from anywhere on the ice. When it comes to his playmaking, Bedard is somewhat reminiscent of Patrick Kane in the way he can almost freeze opposing defenders while he scans the rink to find the best play.
Then, of course, there is the skill when he senses blood in the water. Poor Morgan Frost had no chance once Bedard realized he had him dead to rights.
Celebrini, 19, finished second in Calder Trophy voting last season, but that was only because Lane Hutson was on another planet down the stretch. As an 18-year-old last season, Celebrini was asked to carry the Sharks. He did so admirably and put up 63 points in 70 games.
If anyone was worried about a sophomore clump for Celebrini, they can put those fears to bed. He is producing at a rate of 4.39 points per 60 minutes and has equaled Bedard with 16 five-on-five points, per Natural Stat Trick. Again, Celebrini is doing most of the heavy lifting for a Sharks team that lacks any kind of meaningful depth up front.
Similar to Bedard, Celebrini has a high hockey IQ and plenty of skill to accompany that, but his compete level jumps off the screen every night as well. Take this game-winning play against the New York Rangers earlier in the season. After a quality scoring chance of his own, Celebrini pursues the puck, wins a battle along the boards and keeps his head up to place a one-timer on a tee for teammate Will Smith.
Of the three players, Carlsson might be the most well-rounded right now. In addition to a staggering 4.21 points per 60 minutes (good for seventh in the NHL), Carlsson is driving play far better than his two peers.
With Carlsson on the ice at five-on-five, the Ducks are controlling 56.1% of the expected goals, per Natural Stat Trick. That’s a great number for any player, let alone for a young man who still can’t buy himself a drink in any U.S. establishment. (He turns 21 the day after Christmas.) In all fairness to Bedard and Celebrini, some of that discrepancy can be explained by the team around Carlsson, which is filled with a nice mix of veterans and up-and-coming players.
Bedard and Celebrini do have Carlsson beat in terms of raw five-on-five production as the young Ducks star has just eight points in that situation. However, Carlsson should close that gap if Anaheim keeps dominating scoring chances and expected goals when he’s in the game.
At 6-foot-3 and 208 pounds, Carlsson has a clear size advantage over the other two young guns, and he is learning how to use his frame more frequently. In perhaps his nastiest goal of the season, Carlsson showed that he is the full package.
Against the Golden Knights, Carlsson gave defenseman Noah Hanifin all he could handle on the forecheck, forced a turnover with a physical play on Brett Howden, got to open ice and finished with one of the smoothest backhands you’ll ever see.
Can they crash the playoff party?
It’s still very early in the season, but all three players have their team firmly in the playoff mix. Carlsson’s Ducks are leading the Pacific Division with 25 points, Bedard’s Blackhawks occupy the West’s first wild card spot with 24 points, and Celebrini’s Sharks are right in the wild card race at 21 points.
So, what are the chances that those teams can stay in the race for 82 games? It’s tough to say, but it does seem like the Ducks have the best shot of the three. Here are each team’s playoff chances, according to MoneyPuck:
- Ducks: 80.8%
- Blackhawks: 49.9%
- Sharks: 13.5%
Anaheim is the more complete team, as I mentioned earlier. It has been building toward this longer than the other two, and Carlsson seems like he is the biggest piece to that puzzle.
Chicago, while it’s certainly improved around Bedard, still has a lot of questions. Spencer Knight is excellent in goal, but the Blackhawks have holes all throughout their defense, and the forward depth is very suspect. On top of that, most of Chicago’s underlying numbers indicate that this start is unsustainable.
The Blackhawks have a PDO — which simply adds team shooting and save percentages — of 1.050. The next closest team is the Pittsburgh Penguins at 1.034. Think of PDO as a temperature gauge in a car. Right now Chicago is running dangerously hot, and it’s due for a cool down.
You can copy and paste most of that for the Sharks, which have one of the worst defensive groups in the league, although Celebrini probably has more help than Bedard at forward. It’s just going to be hard for San Jose to keep opposing teams out of its net enough to stay in the wild card race all season.
All that said, we’ve seen young superstars drag teams kicking and screaming into the playoffs before. Just look at what the Montreal Canadiens did last season. Besides, the most important thing for all three teams is that they’re finally making an ascent with their young cornerstones leading the way.
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