Connor Bedard’s first 219 games in a Chicago Blackhawks sweater: 203 points. Patrick Kane’s first 219 games in a Chicago Blackhawks sweater: also 203 points. And now, the matching stat line comes with a matching contract structure — both signed five-year extensions the moment their entry-level deals expired.
The parallel comes courtesy of Ben Pope, the Chicago Sun-Times Blackhawks beat writer, who laid out the comparison on social media July 18. The same day, the Blackhawks made it official: Bedard signed a five-year, $75 million extension running through the 2030-31 season, according to the Chicago Tribune. The NHL’s Blackhawks page confirmed the signing with a release posted that evening.
So let’s talk about where the parallel ends — because the money is where the eras diverge.
Kane’s five-year extension, signed in December 2009, carried a $6.3 million cap hit. The salary cap that season was $56.8 million. Kane’s deal ate 11.1% of the cap. Bedard’s new deal carries a $15 million AAV against a 2026-27 cap that projects north of $104 million — roughly 14.4% of the cap. The structure is the same. The economics are not. Bedard is costing Chicago three percentage points more of its cap ceiling than Kane did at the same career stage, and that gap matters when you’re trying to build a contender around a single franchise center.
And Bedard has earned every cent of the premium. Through 219 games, he’s produced at a 0.93 points-per-game clip — identical to Kane’s pace over the same sample. Kane went on to win three Stanley Cups, a Conn Smythe, and a Hart Trophy. The Blackhawks are betting $75 million that Bedard’s arc bends the same direction.
The timing, though, is complicated. Bedard underwent left shoulder surgery on July 8, per the Tribune, and is expected to miss four months — putting his return somewhere around November. The extension locks in a player who won’t see game action until roughly two months into the first season of the deal. The Tribune also reported that the Blackhawks are exploring ways to address Bedard’s absence, including a potential Patrick Kane return to Chicago — which would add a layer of symmetry that borders on theatrical.
General manager Kyle Davidson, who received his own multi-year extension in April, has been aggressive this offseason. Defenseman Bowen Byram signed a six-year, $75 million deal on July 1, making him the NHL’s highest-paid defenseman. Free-agent additions Cole Smith and Ian Cole were brought in to add depth. The Bedard and Byram extensions together represent $30 million in annual cap commitments to two players under 26 — the foundation of whatever Chicago is building.
Whether that foundation produces the kind of dynasty Kane anchored is a question for 2028, not 2026. But the numbers through 219 games say Bedard has done everything Kane did at the same age, in the same uniform, with the same contract length. The only thing that’s grown is the invoice.
Sources:
- Ben Pope, Chicago Sun-Times (via X)
- Chicago Tribune — Blackhawks coverage
- NHL.com — Chicago Blackhawks news releases