Connor Bedard becomes third-highest paid player in NHL after $75 million deal

[p]His AAV sits just behind Anaheim Ducks' Leo Carlsson's $18 million and Minnesota Wild's Kirill Kaprizov's $17 million.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/bedard-connor/fFchW9IL/"]Bedard[/a]'s $15 million average annual value surpasses that of new teammate [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/byram-bowen/ITJHpt5h/"]Bowen Byram[/a], who also signed a $75 million deal with the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/chicago-blackhawks/A1kbmKeg/"]Blackhawks[/a], but for six years at a $12.5 million AAV. [/p][embed guid="19e4d0c9-b7ab-4090-8cb5-0aec07817c0d" url="https://x.com/NHLBlackhawks/status/2078576868446363934?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Bedard, 23, is coming off his first 30-goal season with a career-high 45 assists in 69 games. The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft has become a cornerstone of the Blackhawks' rebuild as the team has now gone six straight seasons without reaching 30 wins. [/p][p]Bedard won the Calder Memorial Trophy (Rookie of the Year) for the 2023-2024 season after posting 22 goals and 39 assists through 68 games, followed by a 23-44 season playing in all 82 games.[/p][p]He holds the Blackhawks record for goals, assists, and points for any player under 21, while also holding the franchise record for most game-winning goals by a player 20 or younger. [/p][p]Chicago finished last season with a 29-39-14 record, missing the playoffs for the sixth straight season. [/p]