NHL
Connor Bedard Once Received Some Congratulations From Wayne Gretzky, But He Almost Ignored the Call
Joe Kozlowski began his career as a sports journalist in 2013 and joined Sports7 in 2019. He covers the NBA and soccer for Sports7, with specialties in legacy NBA players such as Michael Jordan and Premier League club Arsenal. Off the clock, he's a Kansas City Chiefs fan and a hockey goalie. Growing up loving Shaquille O'Neal and reading everything he could about the great big men throughout NBA history — likely because he was still tall enough, at least relative to his peers, to play center — he's continued to love learning about and exploring the historical and story-based sides of the basketball archives. As for Arsenal, Joe spent a year living in London and latched onto the local support of the club. He's barely missed a match since, loving Arsene Wenger, enduring the Banter Era, and following along through rebuilds. The Premier League interest developed into a passionate following of the Champions League, Europe's big five league, and international soccer as a whole when played at the highest level. Regardless of the sport, Joe is captivated by the stories of athletes beyond the box scores and how they push the envelope — both in terms of what we think a human is capable of accomplishing and how they find new competitive tactics to win.
Get to know Joe Kozlowski betterUpdated30 Jun 2023
In the world of hockey, Wayne Gretzky still looms large. Even if you didn't particularly care for the Edmonton Oilers, it's impossible to ignore the Great One's offensive accomplishments. For most NHL fans, having a conversation with the living legend would be a dream come true. Connor Bedard, however, has already checked that off the list.
For the teenager, though, the interaction almost went south before it even started. In fact, Bedard almost refused to answer the phone when No. 99 came calling.
Let's travel back in time and check it out.
Wayne Gretzky reached out to Connor Bedard in 2020, but he was almost sent to voicemail
While we've all seen plenty of prospects fail to live up to the hype — Oilers fans will remember Nail Yakupov, for example — Connor Bedard seems poised to make a legitimate impact at the NHL level. That reality has already earned him a personal gesture from Wayne Gretzky.
In 2020, the teenager applied for — and was granted — exceptional status, allowing him to play Major Junior Hockey a year early. That's a major honor, and the Great One apparently noticed.
“After I received exceptional status, he called,” Bedard told Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post. There was, however, a catch.
“It was a random number from California, so I didn’t know whether to pick up or not,” the teenager admitted. And, even when he answered, he wasn't quite sure who was on the other end of the line. “I thought it was a buddy pranking me at first, but it sounded like him,” Bedard added.
Eventually, though, the North Vancouver native established that it was actually the NHL's all-time top dog on the other end of the line. Their conversation wasn't very long, but it was still memorable.
“The call wasn’t long at all. It was just a ‘congrats’ and a ‘good luck,'” Bedard explained, noting that he was stuttering and could barely speak. “It was a quick talk, but anytime you can talk with him it’s pretty special.”
Thus far, Bedard hasn't needed too much of Gretzky's luck. Despite entering the WHL as an exceptional prospect, the center has made an incredible impact with the Regina Pats. He recorded 28 points in 15 games during his first campaign with the club and reached the 100-point plateau during his sophomore outing. The center's third Major Junior season saw Bedard one-up himself, tallying 143 points (71 goals and 72 assists) in 57 games. Add a historic World Junior Championships performance, and it's easy to see why he joined the Chicago Blackhawks as the first overall pick of the 2023 NHL draft.
If the young Canadian continues on his current trajectory, he'll have plenty more encounters with the biggest names in hockey. That reality, however, doesn't change the fact that receiving a call from the Great One was pretty awesome.
“It said a lot about him for him to do something like that,” Bedard said. “For me growing up as a hockey fan, obviously I never watched him because I’m too young, but he’s the epitome of greatness. It’s something you don’t really forget, and it’s definitely very special.”
