Connor Bedard joined the Chicago Blackhawks with a lot of expectations ahead of him. Chicago moved on from two franchise icons, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, after last season. Bedard, touted as a generational prospect, is expected to lead this historic franchise into their next golden age.

The Blackhawks have played 29 games, with Bedard skating in every one of them. With the 30th game on the horizon, general manager Kyle Davidson has enough to assess. In a recent Q&A with The Athletic, he shared his early review of his prized prospect's performance.

“In some respects, he’s met them, but also he’s exceeded them as well, because you just never know how that transition’s going to go,” Davidson said when asked if Bedard has met or surpassed expectations. “You are very confident that he’s going to be very successful, but lots of really, really good players don’t step in right away and have as many goals as he has.”

Chicago Blackhawks rookie Connor Bedard

Blackhawks' Connor Bedard rebounded from slow start

Davidson is impressed with Bedard's overall performance. However, things weren't all sunshine and rainbows to begin with. The former Regina Pats star didn't come out of the gate leading the offense. In fact, he had a stretch in October where he went four of five games without scoring a point.

In November, he began to find his stride. He turned in his most explosive performance on November 9. He scored two goals and four points in a massive 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bedard followed that up by scoring another two goals against the Florida Panthers.

The Blackhawks rookie has cooled off as of late. The 18-year-old didn't record another multi-point game until this past Sunday when he had two assists against the Washington Capitals. That said, he has still shown every bit of the potential that made those in the hockey world rave about him well before he entered the draft.

The Blackhawks and Connor Bedard have a long way to go. However, Davidson and Chicago fans certainly have every reason to be pleased with what they've seen. The future in the Windy City is quite bright with Bedard leading the way.