Blackhawks are nailing this one critical aspect of Connor Bedard extension negotiations

No reputable NHL insider or talking head has any idea about what is going on between the Chicago Blackhawks and Connor Bedard. The team and player are talking turkey on an extension; that much is obvious. But beyond that? It's been crickets coming out of the Windy City.

Unless Bedard opts to take an Auston Matthews-type extension with Chicago, then odds are good that this is the most important bit of business general manager Kyle Davidson handles during his tenure with the Blackhawks. The entire rebuild started when it did so the franchise could have a shot at drafting Bedard, and it stalls out in the mushy middle unless the former first-overall pick re-signs and continues to grow as a player.

Davidson will continue to learn and evolve as a manager, as well, and there's one aspect of these negotiations that won't go unnoticed by rival executives and players around the NHL.

Neither the Blackhawks nor Connor Bedard is negotiating his contract extension in public

No one has heard a peep when it comes to what Connor Bedard is asking for, or what Chicago is willing to give him. Kirill Kaprizov's negotiations with the Minnesota Wild weren't that smooth. The Vegas Golden Knights can't even find it in their cultural DNA to allow a coach they fired to interview with a divisional rival. The New York Rangers, who have developed a reputation for doing dirty by their players, couldn't extend Igor Shesterkin without details leaking to the press. Gee, wonder who did that! It probably doesn't rhyme with Bliss Fury.

All of this is to say that there is value in having a reputation as a front office that things won't leak from. It makes the team a lot more difficult to cover, even for writers with a lot of access. And it might even make the Blackhawks a bit less fun to follow. Reading about how your general manager may or may not have leaked stuff to the press to apply pressure to a star player isn't exactly a blast either, though.

In a recent roundup, Scott Powers of The Athletic gave this update on Bedard's extension talks: "Everyone involved in the Connor Bedard contract negotiations has been very tight-lipped. Don’t expect a ton of information coming out before the deal is announced. The new contract could be finished in June, but no one seems to be in a rush."

No news, in this instance, is good news for the Blackhawks and Bedard

It doesn't sound like Blackhawks fans will know what Bedard's next deal looks like until the day it is signed, and that is the way it should be when dealing with players. Respect is a two-way street, and when general managers and organizations start to believe that their own vision is more important than doing business the right way, waters get muddy and feelings get hurt.

Everything, by all accounts, is rosy between Davidson and Bedard right now, but what would that relationship--and next contract--look like if the former first-round pick felt that Chicago was trying to apply pressure to him via leaks in the press? Not as good. It just takes one bad day to sour a relationship for good. Before the narrative turns from building a Stanley Cup Champion to wondering if the centerpiece wants to stay at all.

Davidson is learning to swim in deep waters on the job, but he and his front office deserve credit for how they have handled negotiations with Bedard so far. In that we don't have any idea about what is going on behind closed doors or on those phone calls.

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