The dream of Mitch Marner and Connor Bedard being linemates on the Chicago Blackhawks will not become a reality.
It turns out Marner did not officially reach free agency for the Blackhawks to even make a run at signing him. Marner was traded to the Vegas Golden Knights on the eve of free agency and signed an eight-year deal worth $12 million annually.
The Blackhawks had the cap space to sign Marner for that much. It sounded like they were not going to pursue him as the front office gears up for another fiscally responsible offseason. Even if they wanted to go after him, Marner allowing a trade to Vegas is a signal he wanted to go to a contender.
Thus, this lengthy rebuild prevents another ideal player from coming to Chicago and skating with Bedard.
The Athletic's senior NHL writer and co-Blackhawks beat writer, Mark Lazerus, tweeted that the Hawks' front office felt the timelines were not a match.
Would have looked great alongside Connor Bedard, but the Blackhawks don't feel the timelines line up and it's hard to imagine Marner wanting to come to a team that's playing the longest of long games. https://t.co/Z9tjr3LvNC
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) June 30, 2025
It seems like the front office just does not feel like the rebuild is at the point of adding its version of Marian Hossa. It would be nice if this rebuild eventually starts to produce some progress. Maybe then, the team can add a superstar player that puts them over the top. The team's brass might be right when it comes to not pursuing Marner.
His 75 assists would have been great to slide in right next to Bedard. Those two feeding each other passes in the offensive zone would have provided a ton of goals.
However, the rest of Marner's game has had some question marks, at least when it comes to the intangibles. He will fire the puck on goal. He has a history of most of those shots getting easily blocked (subscription required). Toronto fans blamed his lackluster play in last year's playoffs as one of the reasons the Maple Leafs had another painful exit.
There is a high probability that his contract does not age well.
It would have been nice for the Blackhawks to add someone of Marner's offensive talent to help get the most out of Bedard. Instead, the phenom is working on himself to get the most out of his talents.
.@frank_seravalli is "really bullish" on what we'll see from Connor Bedard next season as he has "revamped his offseason training and is probably going down the path of undoing a couple years worth of poor habits."
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) June 30, 2025
"That's the change that needed to happen," Seravalli says. pic.twitter.com/E7YHhLRf2W
Maybe Oliver Moore or the recently drafted Anton Frondell turn out to be just as good as Marner. If that is the case, they will come younger and cheaper, just the way this organization likes it.