Connor Bedard shies away from discussing one important subject with the Blackhawks media
Photo credit: On Tap Sports Net
Connor Bedard recently finished his sophomore season with the Chicago Blackhawks, as chatter continues of a departure from the organization and his new home, the United Center, but he's quickly worked to shut that down.
The Chicago Blackhawks under Interim Coach Anders Sorensen finished the season with a record of 25-46-11. Speculation soared near the end of the season that Bedard would seek to part ways with the team rather than sign an extension before reaching RFA status.
Despite the fact that NHL Insiders Craig Button and Elliotte Friedman have cautioned against re-signing in the Windy City, he has pledged himself to the rebuilding team.
Instead of letting pundits and discouraged fans drive the narrative that he's leaving or would leave the organization, he took control:
«I've said it so many times, I love being here and the city, the people. Even before I got drafted, I was embraced as one of their own. It's a special sports town and we have a lot of great players coming up, great people. Anything can get said, I don't really look at that. (I) don't really see a lot of that unless someone shows me.»>
This should be soothing to Blackhawks fans everywhere who were scared of the fact that not only would they be out a generational talent if Bedard left.
Bedard finished his sophomore season in the NHL with 67 points (23 goals, 44 assists) in 82 games played.
This was after scoring 61 points and winning a Calder Trophy as the rookie MVP in the NHL in 2023-2024, despite a broken jaw suffered in November 2023.
Bedard's $950K AAV deal will end in 2025-2026, but Kyle Davidson and the Chicago Blackhawks would be wise to lock him down long-term before the price continues to go up year-by-year.
«People who know me know I love to be here and really trust the direction we're going,» he said. «If you get the first overall pick, you're probably not winning the Cup the next two years. It's an understanding of where you're at.
The Blackhawks would be smart to surround Bedard with top talent in the league, considering the amount of cap space available to GM Kyle Davidson.
Mitch Marner and Nikolaj Ehlers are two forwards who would be game-changers for the Blackhawks and help push the rebuild forward.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 20 | 379 ANSWERS Connor Bedard shies away from discussing one important subject with the Blackhawks media Do you think Center Connor Bedard will finish his second contract after his ELC as a Chicago Blackhawk? | ||
| Yes | 244 | 64.4 % |
| No | 135 | 35.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
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