And we\u2019re only barely kidding about the \u2018favourite NHL team\u2019 thing. Bedard\u2019s lifelong admiration of the Canucks is a known and well-reported quantity at this point, with the most recent evidence being that last summer, he and fellow BC product Kent Johnson made the trip to cheer on the Abbotsford Canucks in Game 5 of the Calder Cup Finals. Now that\u2019s dedication!<\/p>\n
Two lower mainland natives, Connor Bedard and Kent Johnson, in attendance for game 5 of the Calder Cup Final in Abbotsford.<\/p>\n
The feeling appears to be mutual, at least as far as the Vancouver fanbase is concerned. On Wednesday, multiple custom \u2018#98 Bedard\u2019 Canucks jerseys were spotted in the crowd. Now that\u2019s manifestation!<\/p>\n
Of course, there\u2019s a difference between wishing for a Bedard homecoming in Vancouver, and that actually coming to pass. Which leads fairly naturally to the question in our headline: How long might the Canucks have to wait to even make a play on Connor Bedard?<\/p>\n
The short answer is \u2018only until this offseason.\u2019 Technically speaking, Bedard\u2019s current and first contract with the Blackhawks runs out as of July 1, 2026, and he has yet to sign an extension.<\/p>\n
Bedard will become an RFA at that point \u2013 assuming that the Blackhawks make him a qualifying offer, which they absolutely will. But until he actually signs that next contract, Bedard will be eligible for an offer sheet, as he will have completed three years of NHL service. That will mark the Canucks first real opportunity to acquire Bedard. But not their first realistic opportunity to acquire Bedard.<\/p>\n
Given the sorts of contracts being handed out to young star forwards right now, and given that Bedard seems to have finally broken out in his third season with 18 points in his first 14 games, it\u2019s safe to say that the asking price on any extension starts at about $10 million per season. And that\u2019s if he signs that contract with the Blackhawks. In order to \u2018steal\u2019 Bedard via offer sheet, a team would need to make him an offer so large that the Blackhawks are willing to walk away from it, and take the compensatory draft picks instead.<\/p>\n
Suffice it to say, then, that any Bedard offer sheet would automatically have to fall into that top tier of compensation, meaning a contract with an AAV over $11.7 million. We suspect the real \u2018walk away\u2019 number to be much higher than that. Such an offer sheet would entail compensation of four first round draft picks.<\/p>\n
Which, in the end, might be a fine price to pay for Bedard to return to Vancouver. But keep in mind, that\u2019s both four first round picks and a contract offer so disgusting that it convinces Chicago to bail on their franchise forward. Given some of the contracts the Canucks already have on the books, and some of the extensions they hope to sign in the near future, it\u2019s hard to see them being able to truly overpay a player on this scale.<\/p>\n
Offer sheets aside, when might Bedard become an unrestricted free agent \u2013 the kind the Canucks could pursue freely, without any worry about compensation?<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a much, much longer wait. NHL players are not typically eligible for UFA status until they\u2019ve hit age 27 or completed seven NHL seasons. Thankfully, when it comes to Bedard, he started his career as early as possible, so that clock has already been ticking.<\/p>\n
Bedard will have completed his seventh NHL season with four more after this one, meaning the conclusion of the 2029\/30 season. In other words, he won\u2019t be a UFA until the next decade.<\/p>\n
Still, there are some steps that Bedard and his representatives could take if becoming a UFA on this earliest possible date is his goal. Were he to sign a four-year extension coming off his ELC contract, Bedard would essentially \u2018walk\u2019 himself to free agency. He could also seek out a three-year \u2018bridge\u2019 deal, which would then place him in the position of taking that automatic one-year qualifying offer in 2029 \u2013 or, even better, filing for arbitration \u2013 which would more indirectly lead him to becoming a UFA in the summer of 2030.<\/p>\n
But there\u2019s really no way to accelerate it any more than that. The year 2030 is still the first point at which Bedard can be a UFA, and have the free and open choice to return to Vancouver.<\/p>\n
Until then, the only real option for an earlier homecoming is via a trade, and that\u2019s not particularly realistic. The Blackhawks are surely not looking to sell Bedard \u2013 not now that he\u2019s finally returning a full investment on their first overall selection \u2013 and if they were, the asking price would almost certainly be something the Canucks could not afford with their current slate of players, picks, and prospects. Bedard may not be a better player than Quinn Hughes, but at this point \u2013 with Hughes a year-and-a-half away from his own UFA status \u2013 it could be argued that Bedard is the more valuable asset, what with his four-and-a-half seasons\u2019 worth of team control remaining. And, simply put, there is no feasible way for the Canucks to trade for someone worth as much or more than Hughes.<\/p>\n
So, what\u2019s it going to take to make those #98 jerseys a reality in Vancouver? Patience, if anything at all. How much patience? A lot of it. The most realistic date at which it even becomes a strong possibility is 2030. And were Bedard to sign an extension longer than four years, then that date gets pushed back even further.<\/p>\n
If there\u2019s an optimistic note to end on, it\u2019s that Bedard is still just 20 years old, and will remain that age for the entire 2025-26 season. On July 1, 2026, he\u2019ll be 25. That means that if he does hit UFA status as early as possible, he will do so with plenty of peak and prime years left in him. And that might be something well worth waiting for.<\/p>\n
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