Blackhawks team reporter breaks down what Connor Bedard's contract extension will look like

While we saw a number of high-profile NHL forwards sign a new contract, the Blackhawks' superstar, Connor Bedard, is keeping track, too.

As someone who's poised to remain with the Blackhawks, he and his representation will need to stay ahead of the market when it comes time to ink his deal.

He's been a firebrand in Chicago this season, scoring 31 points (13-18) in 22 games, and is showing no sign of stopping his excellent play.

There's been plenty of speculation for the last six months about whether or not he should sign a new deal in Chicago or not.

NHL analysts would advise against his re-signing in Chicago again.

To cut through the noise, he pledged his commitment to the Blackhawks and is in ongoing negotiations with GM Kyle Davidson.

While there's excitement in the discussion of what the AAV (average annual value) for Bedard's next contract is, we don't have a good starting point for his next deal.

This is where Scott Powers of The Athletic comes into the fold and delivered his inside information during his latest article.

With the NHL reporting that teams will have increased salary caps to work with, we have to take that into account. The fact that Bedard has scored 128 points in 2 seasons and won a Calder Trophy are accomplishments that help his case that he's the foundation of this era of Blackhawks hockey.

As it stands now, the team has $19.8 million in available cap space.

Bedard won't be handed a blank check, and Davidson, despite a wealth of cash, will have to manage his money to keep the team flush with talent and will have to figure out how to pay Artyom Levshunov, Sam Rinzel, and Oliver Moore down the road.

With Bedard's reliable two-way play and development into a legitimate top-line center in the NHL, his extension could end up being an eight-year, $10 million AAV deal for the superstar forward.

But he could sign in the $10-11 million AAV range like the Utah Mammoth's Logan Cooley and keep the team in the more manageable territory thanks to the fact that he's a restricted free agent, hampering his negotiation power in the league.

Though this isn't his true projected value:

We have yet to see Bedard's full potential in the NHL, and this could be the start of something more between the Blackhawks and their 2023 1st overall pick.