Bedard ready to take over as Blackhawks’ leader following trades

Bedard said fellow forwards Foligno and Dickinson were like big brothers to him. That’s especially true for Foligno, who took Bedard under his veteran wing not long after the 20-year-old was selected by the Blackhawks with the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. Bedard hasn’t forgotten the dinners he had at Foligno’s home and the mini-sticks games he played with his kids, and he’ll take some of Foligno’s qualities with him.

“I think obviously (it’s) how he carries himself but, you know, he’s someone who’s more happy for everyone else than he is for himself and I think that’s infectious,” Bedard said. “Our whole room is like that and he’s a big part of that and that’s kind of how you build a team.

“I said yesterday, just like a family, everyone wants each other to do so well and we’re all fighting for each other every day. He’s someone who exemplified that, but at the end of the day, just a good person and fun guy to be around, fun guy to go to dinner with, go to his house, play mini-sticks with his kids, stuff like that.”

The Blackhawks made it a point to have veterans around Bedard through his first three seasons, whether they were protectors on the ice or mentors in the room. Bedard said leadership is a group task, but there’s no doubt he’s the guy out front.

“It’s just a collective of the 20-plus guys that we have that are going to fill the voids that we’ve lost,” Bedard said. “It’s not an exciting opportunity, because we’re losing a lot of great people, but it’s an opportunity for everyone to grow in every sense — on the ice, off the ice. That’s something we’re going to do.”