NHL insider gives the latest update on Conor Bedard's future with Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks fan base is seeing some promising play early on in the 2025-26 season. It's still early, but the likes of Spencer Knight, Frank Nazar, and Connor Bedard are off to great starts. This is a promising year, as the Blackhawks continue their rebuilding process.

This upcoming offseason, the Blackhawks will have to take care of some business, and no, it has nothing to with the team making big free agent signings to help accelerate their rebuild. Rather, it's signing Bedard to a new contract.

Contracts have been the talk of the NHL, as Kirill Kaprizov signed the richest contract in NHL history with the Minnesota Wild, while Connor McDavid signed a two-year, team-friendly deal with the Edmonton Oilers.

What contract will Bedard and the Blackhawks agree to?

NHL insider Frank Seravalli made an appearance on a Bleacher Report live stream and was asked about a status update on contract talks between the Blackhawks and Bedard. Seravalli said that both sides at this point are in no rush to complete a deal.

NHL insider details why no contract progress has been made between Blackhawks, Connor Bedard

"I don't think the Bedard camp or the Chicago Blackhawks are really all that interested or incentivized to talk extension at this exact moment in time," said Seravalli. "You could see him go that bridge route, but I think the Hawks are also watching this and they know with their cap situation that they want to pay him, they understand the value he provides, and they want to make sure this is a fair proposition for everyone involved. There's not any negativity, no animosity."

He compared the situation to Frank Nazar and Logan Cooley, noting that Bedard doesn't want to get into a deal too early that sees him being underpaid by the time his extension kicks in.

"Think about what Logan Cooley turned down with the Utah Mammoth as we talked about, eight years times $9.6 million, $78-ish million. It's hard to do that, but I think Bedard wants to make sure that he's in a spot where if he is signing long-term for eight years that three-to-four years into it, he's not looking at it saying 'Man, I'm severely underpaid.'," Seravalli said.

This summer, the Blackhawks and Nazar agreed to terms on a seven-year, $46.2 million contract extension. As Seravalli notes, Nazar already looks like a bargain, as he's a point per game player so far this season. Through seven games, Nazar has seven points (three goals, four assists).

For Bedard, he will have to make a decision as to what route to take. Would he want to cash in on a massive, eight-year contract extension? Or, would he like to sign a three-to-four year bridge deal to test the free agency market again? After all, the salary cap is increasing by the year.

Through his first two seasons, Bedard recorded 45 goals and 83 assists for 128 points. In seven games this season, Bedard has seven points (two goals, five assists).

It will be interesting to see what kind of contract Bedard and the Blackhawks agree upon. Both sides will have until the start of next season to finalize a deal.