Captain Jonathan Toews will play his last game as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday in the team’s season finale against the visiting Philadelphia Flyers, general manager Kyle Davidson announced.
“I’ve had a number of conversations with Jonathan throughout the season about his future with the Blackhawks, and recently, we had the difficult conversation that we won’t be re-signing him this offseason,” Davidson said in a release. “Tonight will be his final game as a Blackhawk, and it was very important to us to be able to provide the proper send off for Jonathan and our fans. He has done so much for this organization, and no matter where he plays next, we’re excited our fans get the chance to show Jonathan exactly how much he means to them.”
Tonight will be Jonathan Toews’ last game as a Blackhawk?? pic.twitter.com/di4fTbr3g6
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) April 13, 2023
Toews, 34, has totaled 30 points (14 goals, 16 assists) in 52 games this season. He missed a portion of the season dealing with symptoms of long COVID-19 and chronic immune response syndrome, a health situation that prompted him to sit out the entire 2020-21 campaign.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion (2010, 2013, 2015) is playing in the final season of an eight-year, $84 million contract and follows Patrick Kane — traded to the New York Rangers — to the exit ramp.
Davidson said the decision on Toews didn’t come lightly but was ultimately made in the interest of “organic growth” of the next generation of Blackhawks.
“When there’s a player like Jonathan or Patrick in your locker room, you defer to them. You just let them handle the leadership and there’s not a lot of development opportunity there,” Davidson said.
“It’s just one of those things that, in the situation we’re in, these tough decisions have to be made. And this is just another one of those. I get the potential disappointment because they’re legends. They’ve done so much for the city, so much for the organization and brought so much success that’s only natural. But we’ve got to do what we think is best for the growth of the team and this was something that we thought was best for them.”
A former Selke Trophy recipient as the league’s top defensive forward in 2013, Toews has 882 points (371 goals, 511 assists) in 1,066 career games since the Blackhawks selected him with the third overall pick of the 2006 NHL Draft.
–Field Level Media
