CHICAGO (AP) — Connor Bedard was one of the first players on the ice Monday. He was also one of the last to leave when practice was over.

In many ways, Bedard is the same guy as he begins his second season with the Chicago Blackhawks. In some subtle ways, he is a different person and player than he was a year ago.

“I think he’s become — I mean even more so than last year — just a little more comfortable in his skin,” Blackhawks captain Nick Foligno said. “I think he understands the league, and you can see he’s growing as a person and as a player. … I’ve seen a more driven player. I think he wants to better himself for this season and build on last year.”

Bedard is once again Chicago’s most important player ahead of its season opener at Utah on Tuesday night , just like he was as a rookie. His development will be closely watched, but the hype that followed him throughout his first NHL season has dissipated a bit.

That’s just fine with Bedard, who — while seemingly comfortable with the attention — has never seemed to enjoy talking about himself all that much.

“It feels good for myself, just being maybe a little more relaxed going into it,” Bedard said.

The biggest difference with Bedard, who just turned 19 in July, might have more to do with his surroundings than the young center himself. Looking to help Bedard take his game to another level and start to emerge from its rebuild, Chicago upgraded its roster after it went 23-53-6 last year.

Bedard skated with Teuvo Teravainen and Ilya Mikheyev — two offseason acquisitions — for the team’s last practice before traveling to Utah. He also played alongside Tyler Bertuzzi, who signed with Chicago in free agency, during training camp.

“I think he’s always had that confidence with the puck and making plays,” defenseman Connor Murphy said. “I’d say if anything now he’s got more veterans around him on his line, so I think that can help in different situations in the game and having more of a 200-foot game.”

Bedard was taken by Chicago with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft. While dealing with all the hoopla that went along with his arrival in the NHL, he had 22 goals and 39 assists despite being sidelined for more than a month because of a broken jaw. He won the Calder Memorial Trophy for NHL Rookie of the Year.

When it was over, he applied everything he learned as he prepared for his second year.

“I think, for me, a lot of speed and stuff,” Bedard said. “I was in the gym and on the ice just trying to put myself in as much of game situations as I can.”

Some of Bedard’s confidence going into his second year — even with his considerable skillset, made even sharper by his summer work — just has to do with the experience he gained in his first season.

“I think there’s just little things that you pick up or you change a little bit after getting used to the league and playing some games,” he said. “So I think there’s just kind of little plays that I make now or know what’s going to work and all that.”

Bedard, listed at 5-foot-10 and 185 pounds, was a bit feisty during Chicago’s preseason games, tangling with Minnesota’s Joel Eriksson Ek and fighting with St. Louis forward Zach Bolduc. He brushed it off as “just hockey” and not part of any adjustment on his end, wryly pointing out that he would lose a fight against most NHL players.

Coach Luke Richardson also downplayed the significance of Bedard’s preseason physicality. But he highlighted where he thinks Bedard’s game is going.

“I think he’s just going to get stronger and know when he needs to hold on to that puck and know when he needs to get it off his stick a little bit earlier and spin off and get open again,” Richardson said. “And I think those things are going to come in time.

“… He’s just raring to go and move up the ladder, both as a team and then I think himself individually.”

Here are some other things to know as the Blackhawks embark on their 2024-25 season:

The opener

The puck drops on Chicago’s 2024-25 season in Utah at 9 p.m. Tuesday. It’s a nationally televised game on ESPN.

It’s also the first game in Salt Lake City for the team known for now as the Utah Hockey Club. The franchise, formerly known as the Arizona Coyotes, relocated to Utah.

READ MORE: Early reaction to Utah Hockey Club is strong as it enters crowded Salt Lake market

How can I watch?

As mentioned, Tuesday night’s opener is on ESPN.

But all non-nationally televised Blackhawks games are now on the brand-new Chicago Sports Network (CHSN), which launched Oct. 1 and is the new TV home for the Blackhawks, Bulls and White Sox.

Click HERE to find out how you can watch Blackhawks games on CHSN.

The roster

The Blackhawks’ opening-night roster, per the team’s website, lists 16 forwards, eight defensemen and two goalies.

That includes one Chicagoland native, defenseman Alex Vlasic, who hails from Wilmette in the north suburbs. This will be Vlasic’s fourth NHL season, all with the Blackhawks.

The Blackhawks also return both goaltenders from 2023-24. Petr Mrazek is back in net after starting 53 games last season, as is Arvid Soderblom, who started 29.

The schedule

The Blackhawks begin their season with a four-game Western Conference road trip.

After Tuesday’s opener in Utah, they cross the Canadian border to play the Winnipeg Jets on Friday night, the defending conference champion Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night and the Calgary Flames next week Tuesday night.

The Blackhawks finally take the United Center ice for the first time in the regular season when they host the San Jose Sharks on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7:30 p.m. That’s also the start of four straight home games.

The Blackhawks will also be part of the 2024 Winter Classic when they face the St. Louis Blues at Wrigley Field on Dec. 31 at 4 p.m.

It will be the second time Wrigley Field has hosted the Winter Classic, the third time overall the Blackhawks have hosted it and the fifth time they’ve played in it.

Playoffs?

The Blackhawks will conclude the regular season on April 15, 2025, on the road against the Ottawa Senators.

At that point, the Blackhawks hope they will be among the Western Conference’s eight-team Stanley Cup playoff field for the first time since the 2019-20 season, when they were ousted in the first round by the Vegas Golden Knights in that season’s COVID-altered format.

That was also Chicago’s last winning season. The Blackhawks have suffered through four consecutive losing seasons and have not won a playoff series since capturing their third Stanley Cup title in six years in 2014-15.

They hope the turnaround begins Tuesday night.

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