Crawford vs. Lehner is Blackhawks’ biggest competition, but it won’t be settled in camp

In his first public comments since the Blackhawks’ shocking and splashy signing of Vezina Trophy finalist Robin Lehner on July 1, goalie Corey Crawford said almost all the expected things Friday.

Almost.

The 34-year-old Crawford, a Hawks mainstay since 2010 — even though recurring concussions and other injuries have limited him to a combined 66 starts the last two seasons — called Lehner a ‘‘really good goaltender’’ who ‘‘just helps our team.’’

Crawford gets a check there, both for cliché use and accuracy.

Lehner is coming off a spectacular season with the Islanders in which he recorded a 2.13 goals-against average and carried a team with the 21st-ranked offense in the NHL to the playoffs.

And his addition, stunning as it was, now appears to be the most convincing reason the Hawks might return to the postseason in 2020.

But then Crawford became a little less rosy and a bit more honest in his comments.

He admitted that his body ‘‘wears down a little bit easier as you get older’’ and that he wasn’t able to lift as much weight this summer as he used to.

And fed a softball question about whether the involuntary workload management will help his longevity, Crawford responded bluntly: ‘‘Personally, I feel better when I play more.’’

Lehner’s .930 save percentage last season bested Crawford’s .908, but the latter actually graded better in save percentage on high-danger scoring chances (Crawford ranked seventh in the league, Lehner 13th). That suggests Lehner’s apparent superiority might have been more a product of the Islanders’ and Hawks’ contrasting defensive acumens.

Still, deep down, Crawford probably does feel threatened to some extent by Lehner’s arrival, especially with both facing unrestricted free agency next summer. At that point, Lehner will be 29 and Crawford an unnerving 35.

That’s how most ultra-competitive athletes would feel, much less someone as driven and accomplished as Crawford. But that extra edge likely will help the Hawks this season.

‘‘He’s back to himself, as far as his personality and excitement to be back playing and ready for the season to begin,’’ general manager Stan Bowman said. ‘‘He’s in a good frame of mind, trained well, and he’s ready for a big season.’’

Crawford seemingly has a chip on his shoulder. Lehner, just months removed from being shunned by the team he helped resurrect, does, too. And Collin Delia, who likely will be sent back to Rockford for the start of the season but still is very much in the long-term picture, might be the most motivated of all.

Whose edge proves edgier than the others’ won’t be determined in the next two weeks of training camp, although the duel for the starting role in the season opener Oct. 4 will be interesting nonetheless. For what it’s worth, through the first two days of practice Friday and Saturday, neither Crawford nor Lehner did anything spectacularly good or bad.

That’s been the idea for months now: Keep Crawford and Lehner competing all season in a way that seeing-the-end Cam Ward couldn’t last season.

‘‘I’m sure there’s going to be points where both guys are going to have hot streaks, so that’s in the hands of our coach,’’ Crawford said. ‘‘Jeremy [Colliton] is going to have to decide who to go with. . . . Our job is to try to be at our best and push each other.’’

‘‘It’s a team that wants to make the playoffs again,’’ Lehner said. ‘‘We want to win, so you have to earn your starts.’’