Connor Bedard feels ready for Blackhawks' captaincy, and his teammates agree: 'He's our guy'

Connor Bedard showcased a more mature, comfortable, outspoken and occasionally funny side of himself in his third Blackhawks season. He allowed his genuine personality and his public persona to become one.

In his fourth Hawks season, will he showcase his leader side? All indications suggest that's where things are heading.

Bedard, albeit in his usual diplomatic way, didn't hide his desire to become Hawks captain during exit interviews Thursday.

"[With] how tight our room is, how close everyone is off the ice, it makes it so easy for anyone to be in that role," Bedard said. "If I did get the 'C', I'm not going to change who I am and become something different just because of that letter.

"It's an added responsibility that I do think I would be ready for. A lot of guys could be ready for it in that room. But it would be a special honor, for sure."

Since the entire previous leadership group — captain Nick Foligno and alternates Connor Murphy and Jason Dickinson — was traded away in early March, the ultra-young Hawks had about six weeks to experience that leadership void and watch new leaders step up.

Bedard and veteran Tyler Bertuzzi served as alternate captains (with no official captain) during the stretch run, but Bedard probably won't be long for the "A."

Behind the scenes, his teammates attest he's growing into an excellent leader, one whose burning desire to compete and succeed rubs off on others but doesn't overwhelm the more friendly, laid-back half of his personality.

"He's the perfect guy for [the captaincy]," Ryan Greene said. "He cares about his teammates and checks in on everybody all the time. He's our guy. So he's leading the way in a lot of different ways. I think he's more than ready."

General manager Kyle Davidson said he will treat the captaincy as an "organizational decision" and hold meetings throughout the summer with people in different roles to gather their input. He didn't rule out the possibility of the Hawks entering next season without a captain.

Alex Vlasic might perhaps be one other long-shot candidate. He mentioned leadership as the area he grew most this season during his exit interview.

Vlasic has a good chance of at least becoming an alternate captain in the same mold as Murphy, whose uncanny way of instinctively doing "everything right in how he treated people" inspired Vlasic over the past few years.

But it would be surprising to see Bedard take the ice next October without a "C" adorning his chest.

For one thing, it's increasingly common for NHL teams to consider "captain" and "best player" almost synonymous. Most faces of franchises automatically become captains, and Bedard is certainly the face of the Hawks.

Beyond that, however, he does truly seem ready for the role now — in a way he wouldn't have been in his first two seasons, even though he was already the franchise's face at that time.

"I've seen how he's changed as a person and player, and he's shown everybody in this organization — including me — that he knows what it takes to win," Ryan Donato said. "He's put in the work, he's dedicated and obviously he's the franchise player. We want to make sure we play our best for him, but he wants to give his best to every guy.

"He's one of those guys, like a lot of our young guys, that take the experiences they've learned from the old guys and ... use it to their benefit. He does a tremendous job at that. The fact he's voicing [his desire to be captain], it is exciting for me to see that. He's a great candidate for that and would be very deserving."

Bedard's two gorgeous assists in the season finale Wednesday gave him a final stat line of 75 points in 69 games — an eight-point improvement over last season in 13 fewer games.

He was maintaining an even more impressive pace (44 points in 31 games) before his Dec. 12 shoulder injury, and he said he took responsibility for the team's slide down the standings after that.

He had less to say about his upcoming contract negotiations as a restricted free agent, which his agent said would start in May. He insisted he hasn't thought about it and is "not smart enough" to calculate numbers himself.

"I know I want to be here, and we’ll get it done soon," he said. "I don’t think if it’s not done in a month, there’s any worry."

Davidson said the Hawks intend to be "more than fair" in those negotiations while also conveying to Bedard's camp they need to preserve enough cap space to build a strong team around him.