Morning Chirps: Bedard talks contract extension, Crosby addresses trade rumors

We are less than a month away from opening night in the National Hockey League. The offseason unofficially ends later this morning when the Chicago Blackhawks squad for the Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase hits the practice ice. I’ll be at the Fifth Third Arena for the rest of the week, so be on the lookout for stories right out of the locker room.

Blackhawks Chirps

• Nick Foligno is entering the final season of his Blackhawks contract. Jim Lynch says no matter what he provides this season, he’s already done the job he was brought in to do.

• Jeff Maroon is not dampening his expectations for Sam Rinzel. He writes that he could be the best blueliner in Chicago this season.

• Connor Bedard spoke to NHL.com’s Nick Cotosnika during the NHL Media Tour. He revealed that he and the Blackhawks share a mutual interest in securing a multi-year contract extension. He wants to be here, so he knows it will happen.

• I sat in on the CHGO Blackhawks Podcast yesterday with Jay Zawaski. We had a great conversation with Sean Shapiro about how Dustin Wolf’s new contract with the Calgary Flames could be a precursor to Spencer Knight’s next deal.

• It feels like a lifetime ago when Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews were in the NHL at the same time. That changes this fall as Toews makes his return to the league with the Winnipeg Jets. Greg Wyshyski of ESPN caught up with Kane, who calls Toews’ comeback a “great story.”

• On this date in 1954, the Blackhawks purchased the contract of Red Sullivan from the Boston Bruins. Over his two seasons in Chicago, he scored 33 goals and 101 points before he was traded to the New York Rangers for Wally Hergesheimer in 1956.

• Blackhawks Birthday Roll Call, Sept. 10: Pete Palangio, Jim Pappin, and Dave Feamster.

NHL Chirps

• Could all three Hughes brothers be on the same NHL roster one day? New Jersey Devils star Jack Hughes made some comments during the NHL Media Tour about loving to have the chance to play with his brother Quinn. The Norris Trophy-winning defenseman has two years left on his current contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

• Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby also spoke to NHL.com. He brushed off the recent trade rumors and is only focused on playing at a high level to return to the Stanley Cup Final.

• Dallas Stars forward Tyler Seguin told Robert Tiffin of D Magazine that he has fully recovered from the shoulder injury that hampered him during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He revealed the injury occurred on a hit by Darnell Nurse in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.

• Did you know that there is a professional Pickleball league? Even crazier than that, Aleksander Barkov is a part-owner of one of its teams.

• NHL Birthday Roll Call, Sept. 10: Yvon Vautor, Robert Palmer, Tim Hunter, Joe Nieuwendyk, Chris Joseph, Denis Pederson, Jordan Staal, Troy Terry, Dmitri Voronkov, Nikita Nesterenko, and Olen Zellweger.