contract extension<\/a> was proof of that. He could have signed for fewer years. He could have signed for more money. But by agreeing to an extension of five years and an annual average value of $15 million, he committed to the Blackhawks for long enough that they\u2019ll have plenty of time to win with him on this contract and at a price where he probably left money on the table that the Blackhawks can use elsewhere to improve the team. No one would have blamed him if he demanded five years at $18 million per, like Leo Carlsson got with Anaheim after signing an offer sheet.<\/p>\n\u201cI\u2019m very happy with the amount of money I\u2019m making,\u201d Bedard said. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot. I think just with that, obviously the offer sheet is different as well, with a team trying to take a guy. It\u2019s going to be a different value. That didn\u2019t change anything I was thinking.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike I\u2019ve said so much, and it\u2019s not anything fake, Chicago\u2019s the only place I want to play. Just seeing the growth of our young guys and just how good of a group we are, in the room how tight it is, how much fun we have, I\u2019m very happy to get this deal signed, just focus on the team and excited to get back and get going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrick Kane homecoming in Chicago or Buffalo?<\/p>\n
Mark Lazerus and Shayna Goldman<\/p>\n
Bedard repeatedly mentioned the bond this young Blackhawks team has throughout his 20-minute video call with reporters Monday, saying how much camaraderie the players have and how much they believe in each other. It followed up a pointed comment by his agent, Don Meehan, who on Saturday told The Athletic \u2014 essentially unprompted \u2014 that Bedard bristles at any criticism of the roster situation in Chicago.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe really believes in his teammates, and he doesn\u2019t suffer any constructive criticism of the team or his teammates well,\u201d Meehan said. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t tolerate that. He believes, and he\u2019s totally committed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not that those comments will stop beleaguered Vancouver fans and pundits from penciling Bedard in on the 2031-32 Canucks roster, of course.<\/p>\n
No one who knows Bedard will be surprised if he\u2019s pushing to play before the original four-month timetable following shoulder surgery on July 8. Bedard didn\u2019t dismiss that possibility, but he knows he has to do what\u2019s right for his shoulder.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll see,\u201d Bedard said. \u201cAll I can do is everything in my power to get it right as quick as possible. Whether that\u2019s quicker than four months, there\u2019s obviously that timeline right now, but I\u2019m just going to do everything I can day-to-day to try and get back as quick as possible. At the end of the day, you have to be safe and feel comfortable with it. Whenever that is, it is. I\u2019m going to do everything I can, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bedard\u2019s decision to have the surgery was about doing what was best for his long-term outlook. Last season, he injured his other shoulder and decided then it was best not to have surgery.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, Bedard doesn\u2019t have any concern about future injuries.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce you\u2019re playing hockey, you\u2019re playing hockey,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can\u2019t go out there scared of anything. \u2026 But you do everything you can \u2014 you always do everything you can \u2014 to try to prevent injury and stay healthy. It\u2019s a terrible part of the game, but for me, to have this next little bit and go through that adversity and try to get stronger mentally in that way, that\u2019s how I\u2019m looking at it. And then come back and be in games, you\u2019re not going to be scared, you\u2019re going to be playing your game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bowen Byram already expressed his excitement about playing with Bedard. Bedard countered with his own praise for Byram\u2019s game and, like the Blackhawks, highlighted his potential outside of Colorado and Buffalo.<\/p>\n
\u201cGetting Bo, he\u2019s someone who\u2019s going to be one of the best D-men in the league,\u201d Bedard said. \u201cHe\u2019s always shown that. When you play behind Cale (Makar) and (Rasmus) Dahlin, it\u2019s not easy to take their spots. Just for him to get that opportunity to be that No. 1 and prove himself in that way, and he\u2019s going to do it. He\u2019s one of the most skilled players in the league. Just his motivation to prove that is unbelievable, and his excitement to be with us is great for the team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bedard had nothing but positive things to say about the Blackhawks\u2019 offseason additions. He did have a specific reason he was particularly happy to have Ian Cole on his side for a change.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Ian Cole probably landed the most cross-checks on me out of anyone else in my life, but now he\u2019s my teammate and we\u2019re both going to go to war for each other, which is the beautiful thing about hockey,\u201d Bedard said.<\/p>\n
As for the cheeky $9.8 million signing bonus for the next five years, Bedard, who wears No. 98, couldn\u2019t take credit.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was them,\u201d he said. \u201cOnce this deal came, I don\u2019t know much about the insides of it, the bonuses and everything. That was the first thing they offered, so it\u2019s neat of them to do that. I would\u2019ve been fine with whatever, but it\u2019s funny it turned out that way and I\u2019m happy. It\u2019s pretty cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Blackhawks were the second-lowest-scoring team in the NHL last season, with just 2.56 goals per game. When asked what the new additions \u2014 players such as Byram and rookie Roman Kantserov \u2014 can do to improve that offense, Bedard took it one step further.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to take a big step this year; we want to be a playoff team,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s our only goal. To add that high-end skill and also the other additions \u2014 you add guys who are physical and can help on the other end of the ice, which is just as important \u2014 our adds are going to (make) a huge difference. We feel good about our group, and what we\u2019ve got going in. We\u2019re extremely confident in the room and the growth we\u2019ve all had this summer. I think it\u2019s going to be a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chicago missed the playoffs by 18 points last season.<\/p>\n
The Blackhawks haven\u2019t had a captain since trading Nick Foligno to Minnesota at the trade deadline, but it\u2019s not hard to envision Bedard with a \u201cC\u201d on his sweater this coming season.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be special, for sure,\u201d he said. \u201cJust getting to play for the Blackhawks organization in general, without any of that, is the best thing in the world. If anyone would become a captain, if it\u2019s someone else, I\u2019d be just as happy for them. But if I was able to get that honor, it would be so special. I know it\u2019s something I wouldn\u2019t take for granted for a second. But we\u2019ve got so many guys in the room that can lead. If I\u2019m chosen for that, that would be unbelievable, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The rumors have swirled almost since Connor Bedard was drafted. Whether it\u2019s about the Blackhawks\u2019 losing or his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":774696,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[66],"tags":[4824,385,99],"class_list":["post-774695","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-chicago-blackhawks","tag-nhl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/774695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=774695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/774695\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/774696"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=774695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=774695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=774695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}