The time has come. Jonathan Toews has reportedly decided toౠ retire from playing professional hockey.
Mark Spector at SportsNet recently (and my sources have since confirmed) the fact that Toews’ name was not on a list of available free agents recently submitted to the NHL by CAA, the agency that represents him. That feels an awful lot like a guy who’s ready to step away from the game:
Word is Toews won’t play next season. When hꦆis agency sent out its list of pending free agents, we are told his name was not even on the list.
A lock to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame once he bec༺omes eligible, Toews will be walking away from the game with a resume without hole▨s. He has three Stanley Cup championship rings, a Conn Smythe Trophy, a Selke Trophy, two Olympic gold medals, a World Juniors gold and a World Championship gold.
In 2010 when the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, Toews became the youngest playeಌr ever inducted into the (Stanley Cup championship, Olympic and World Championship gold medals).
Among all-time Blackhawks, Toews ranks:
But those accomp🧸lishments are not how I will remember Toews.
Toews retires (again, reportedly … there’s been no official announcement yet) one of only four players to appear in more than 1,000 games in his NHL career for the Chicago Blackhawks — and never wear another sweater. The others: Stan Mikita, Bob Murray and Brent Seabrook. (I will never acknowledge that Seabrook was a member of the Lightning.)
On July 18, 2008, the Blackhawks named Toews the 34th captain in the history of Chicago’s Original Six franchise. At the time, he was the third-youngest player to be named an NHL captain. When his 2022-23 season came to a close, Toews concluded the longest run as a captain in Chicago professional sports.
This isn’t the script anyone wanted for the end of Toews’ career. But rarely is the end the Disney movie you dream about. But he’ll go out with one and only one NHL jersey hanging in his closet. He only every wanted to play for one team, and he’ll do that — just like another star who wore No. 19, Steve Yzerman in Detroit.
