Blackhawks' Bedard named NHL's rookie of the month

NEW YORK — Chicago Blackhawks centre Connor Bedard has been named the NHL's rookie of the month while Vancouver Canucks defenceman Quinn Hughes was named the league's third star for November.

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov and Colorado Avalanche defenceman Cale Makar were named first and second star respectively.

Bedard, the first-overall pick at the 2023 NHL draft, led all rookies last month with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in 12 games.

The 18-year-old had at least a point in all five of Chicago's away games in December, extending his road scoring streak to seven games dating to Oct. 27.

Bedard recorded his first career multi-goal and multi-point performance, as well as his first game-winning goal, with two goals and two assists in a 5-3 win at Tampa Bay on Nov. 9.

Calgary Flames centre Connor Zary (three goals, seven assists in 10 games), Columbus Blue Jackets left-wing Dmitri Voronkov (3-6 in 15 games), Minnesota Wild centre Marco Rossi (3-5 in 12 games) and Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson (4-2-0, 1.70 goals-against average, .926 save percentage, one shutout) were also considered.

Hughes ranked fourth in the NHL in both assists (17) and overall scoring (22 points) in 15 games to propel the Canucks to a 9-6-0 month.

The Canucks captain set a franchise record for points in a calendar month by a defenceman, eclipsing the previous high of 21 by Dennis Kearns in March 1977.

Hughes – who also led the league with 11 power-play assists last month – had a career-best 11-game point streak (four goals, 13 assists) from Nov. 6-25.

Kucherov led the league in November with 28 points (nine goals, 19 assists) in14 games.

Makar led the league with 21 assists, added four goals and had a plus-13 rating over 14 games.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2023.