As the NHL offseason nears its end, Connor Bedard isn’t just relaxing in his home province of BC — he’s climbing to new heights, literally.
Over the weekend, the Chicago Blackhawks forward competed in the Grouse Grind, a famously difficult hike up the side of Vacnouver’s Grouse Mountain. While the trail is just 2.9 kilometres long, the elevation up the side of the mountain is a pretty daunting task even for the NHL’s top athletes.
Unsurprisingly, the first-overall pick in the 2023 Draft absolutely crushed it.
Former NHLer and podcast host Paul Bissonnette joined Bedard for the hike and shared on social media that the North Vancouver native completed the climb in just 37 minutes.
“6 am Sunday morning Grouse Grind with the NHL’s reigning Calder winner. Bedard is a machine,” Bissonnette wrote in an X post. “37-minute grind time. Now he’s going to skate. The NHL is in good hands, folks.”
6am Sunday morning Grouse Grind with the NHL’s reigning Calder winner. Bedard is a machine. 37 minute grind time. Now he’s going to skate. The @nhl is in good hands folks. pic.twitter.com/LGbox8Q3IF
— Paul Bissonnette (@BizNasty2point0) September 8, 2024
For context, it took Bissonnette nearly an hour to complete the hike.
I finished with a summer personal best of 52:45. Felt like shit though, I tried to keep pace with the mutant early. Rookie mistake by me.
— Paul Bissonnette (@BizNasty2point0) September 8, 2024
Bedard, 19, is undoubtedly in excellent shape, but the Calder Trophy winner is not the only hockey player to turn heads on the mountain this year.
Back in July, Canucks legends Daniel and Henrik Sedin led a group of 28 Canucks prospects up the trail during the team’s post-draft development camp. Despite being more than twice the age of the participants, the 43-year-old twins still outpaced the younger players in the fitness challenge.
The Sedins’ dominance on the Grouse Grind isn’t new, though. Last year, Daniel completed the Multi-Grouse Grind Challenge, climbing the mountain 11 times in one day. Over 10 hours, eight minutes, and 18 seconds, he tackled the trail repeatedly, completing his first ascent in 52:43 and his 11th in 55:39 — an impressive feat for any athlete, let alone a retired one.