Jonathan Toews gave Blackhawks fans multiple reasons to cheer in his return from a two-month layoff.
The Captain is back! Following a 27-game absence, Jonathan Toews returned to the Chicago Blackhawks lineup for Saturday's contest against the New Jersey Devils.
The night began with a thunderous roar from the United Center faithful when Toews was introduced for the first time in over two months.
Blackhawks fans were thrilled to have their captain back on the ice, and it didn't go unnoticed.
"There’s no doubt you hear that [roar] when you step on the ice. It felt good to get that coming back tonight," Toews said.
After easing into the game by skating on the fourth line, Toews started to slot up in the forward groupings. He eventually found himself on the top unit with Andreas Athanasiou and Lukas Reichel, which led to another applause-worthy moment for Blackhawks fans.
Nearly halfway through the third period, Toews delivered a beautiful precision pass to Athanasiou, who converted an easy tap-in goal to make it a 4-3 game at the time.
In addition to the assist, Toews recorded one shot on goal and went 8/12 at the faceoff dot in 14 minutes of ice time. Not too shabby for his first game action since Jan. 28.
The Blackhawks proceeded to lose 6-3 to the Devils, but the night will be deemed a success by the Chicago faithful regardless.
Reclaiming the top spot in the NHL Tankathon standings? Check.
Seeing Jonathan Toews — whose days as a member of the Blackhawks could very well be coming to an end soon — back on the ice? Check.
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