CHICAGO -- When Connor Bedard began his offseason workouts, the grind of his first 82-game season was fresh on the Chicago Blackhawks center's mind.

"I've always been someone that has done a lot; it comes from loving the game as a kid and stuff, and you always feel like you want to always be working on it," Bedard said at the NHL/NHLPA North American Player Media Tour earlier this month. "But you're playing every other day. You've got to chill out, and I think that's something that you learn as you go and just finding a balance."

It was quite the statement coming from the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, the player who was usually on the ice long after practice ended, anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. Chicago's staff started taking his sticks and hiding the steel from his skates t

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