Chicago Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews will not be playing in both of the team’s games this weekend due to an illness.
Up to this point, the Blackhawks have not specified what illness Toews is dealing with, although it’s hard to see it being COVID-related if they didn’t specify it. He previously missed the entirety of the 2020-21 season with chronic immune response syndrome, but the Blackhawks haven’t specified that it’s related to that.
It’s also possible that it could be more of a precautionary thing related to the trade deadline, but again, the Blackhawks would probably specify that it’s related to that instead of an illness. Toews ranked 5th on Frank Seravalli’s most recent Trade Targets list, so he’s a sought-after commodity this deadline.
The Blackhawks were set to play the Arizona Coyotes on Friday night and the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night, with the latter being Toews’ hometown team. Toews hasn’t skated in six days, but the Blackhawks hope that he’ll be ready for Tuesday’s game in Montreal.
While Toews’ production is far from what it used to be, he’s currently on pace to improve on last season. He currently has 14 goals, 14 assists, and 28 points in 46 games after putting up just 12 goals, 15 assists, and 37 points in 71 games in 2021-22, all career-lows for the center.
The 3rd overall pick of the 2006 draft, Toews has spent all 15 seasons of his career with the Blackhawks, including 14 as team captain, helping lead the team to three Stanley Cup championships in 2010, 2013, and 2015. He’s in the final year of an eight-year contract with a $10.5 million cap hit and is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, the main reason why the Blackhawks are looking to move him at the trade deadline.
While Toews is an important part of the Blackhawks, it certainly won’t hurt their current plans, as the team is in full-tank mode right now. They sit second last in the NHL with a 15-29-5 record, and have currently lost four of their last five games.
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