By Canadian Press

No. 1 overall draft pick Connor Bedard begins development camp with Chicago Blackhawks

Jun 30, 2023 | 12:41 PM

CHICAGO (AP) — Connor Bedard is going to work with the Chicago Blackhawks.

Bedard is the centerpiece of the team’s development camp at its practice facility near the United Center. The high-scoring forward was selected by Chicago with the No. 1 overall pick in the NHL draft on Wednesday night.

While Bedard continues his preparation for his first NHL season, the Blackhawks are adding some veteran forwards to help with his transition.

Chicago announced Friday that it had agreed to a $4 million, one-year contract with Corey Perry, who had 12 goals and 13 assists in 81 games for Tampa Bay last season.

The Blackhawks traded a seventh-round pick to the Lightning for the 38-year-old Perry on Thursday. He was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent on Saturday.

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Chicago, which finished with a 26-49-7 record last season, also acquired forwards Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno in a trade with Boston on Monday. It announced a $4 million, one-year contract with the 35-year-old Foligno on Tuesday.

Perry is joining his fifth NHL team. He has 417 goals and 466 assists in 1,257 career regular-season games.

Perry also leads active players with 196 career postseason appearances. He won the 2007 Stanley Cup with Anaheim, collecting six goals and nine assists in 21 postseason games that year.

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Follow Jay Cohen at https://twitter.com/jcohenap

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Jay Cohen, The Associated Press