Patrick Kane's next destination is coming into focus after latest star report

Connor Bedard just made the Blackhawks' free agency wish list personal, telling fans exactly how much a Patrick Kane reunion would mean to this roster.

Bedard spoke to the idea this afternoon, and he did not hold back.

"I hope so! I don't know what I could say to persuade his decision, but we'd all be so excited to have a player like that," Bedard said.

He kept going. "That would be incredible to get to play with him and learn from him. Hopefully he decides to come back. It would make us a way better team."

Bedard is coming off a 75-point season, with 30 goals and 45 assists across 69 games. He posted eight points in his last 10 games, including four in his final five.

Chicago finished 29-39-14 this year, good for 72 points and a minus-62 goal differential. Not exactly a roster loaded with proven scoring punch behind Bedard.

Jeff Blashill enters his second season behind the Chicago bench, hired last May under GM Kyle Davidson. A Kane reunion would hand him a real weapon on the wing.

Buffalo now looms as real competition for Kane

Because this isn't a one-team race. According to NHL Rumour Report, Kane is currently deciding between Chicago and Buffalo, and it's not clear if actual offers have been tabled yet.

Buffalo finished the year at 50-23-9, good for 109 points and a plus-47 differential. That's the kind of contending roster a 37-year-old scorer might find hard to turn down.

Detroit is also in the mix, sort of. The Red Wings were, or still are, interested in retaining Kane, but the belief is he's not likely to stick around Motown.

Here's the thing about Kane at this stage of his career. He's not chasing a paycheck anymore.

Signing him just to relive 2013 and 2015 would be sentimental. It wouldn't fix what's broken on a team that lost 39 games and bled goals all year.

Bedard's plea is genuine, and it's easy to see why a kid needs a mentor. But wanting Kane back and Kane actually helping Chicago win right now are two very different questions.

Nothing here suggests a decision is close. Kane's camp, per the reporting, hasn't tabled real numbers with anyone yet.

Chicago fans just got a jolt of hope from their franchise center. Whether that hope survives contact with Buffalo's roster is the part nobody can answer yet.