The Chicago Blackhawks have a late start for their matchup against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night at the United Center. The contest won’t start between the lowly Blackhawks (16-31-5) and Oilers (33-16-4) until 8:30 p.

The Oilers are in the second half of a back-to-back as they visited the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night. After a rough start to the 2024-25 season, Edmonton has righted the ship and rocketed up the standings. They come into Wednesday first in the Pacific Division, two points ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights.

Bedard's new contract will begin in 2026-27, when the salary cap will be $104 million. How will the negotiatons be handled on each side?

Since Bedard’s next contract will begin in 2026-27, those figures will play a critical role in determining his market value, and The Athletic's Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus think he could command as much as $17 million per season in his new contract.

Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid, right, looks to pass as St. Louis Blues' Cam Fowler (17) defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Connor Hamilton) AP The Edmonton Oilers and their high-scoring offense led by Connor McDavid are always a treat to watch.

"We have star players, too, that don't seem to be protected as well as some of the other teams' stars," Blackhawks captain Foligno said.

Connor Bedard scored from a seemingly impossible angle as the Chicago Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-1 on Tuesday night, and the star forward said after the victory that "I've tried that shot a million times and I finally put one in.

The Chicago Blackhawks have seen a nice uptick in production from their young star Connor Bedard following a goal scoring drought in November. The phenom currently has 13 goals and 30 assists for a total of 43 points through 49 games in his second NHL season.