Jonathan Toews Finds His Way Back Home in Winnipeg

There are comeback stories, and then there are real comeback stories. This is more like a come-back-home story. Jonathan Toews returning to the NHL with the Winnipeg Jets this season falls into the second category.

Toews had been away from the game.

This wasn’t a quick reset or a “took the summer off and came back refreshed” situation. Toews had been away from the game for two-and-a-half years, dealing with serious health issues that included long COVID and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. At one point, he wasn’t even sure if hockey was going to be part of his life again.

He stepped away after the 2022–23 season and spent a long stretch just trying to get himself right. That included a trip to India for Ayurvedic treatment—far from the NHL spotlight, far from the routine of NHL life. So when he signed a one-year deal with his hometown Jets, it wasn’t just another roster move. It felt like a personal reset.

Toews played like his (almost) old self.

And then he quietly went out and played like Jonathan Toews again. At 38, he didn’t come back to chase headlines. He came back to do the small things that win hockey games. And one of those things—still as sharp as ever—is faceoffs. Toews finished the season leading the league in faceoff percentage among regular centers at 62.1%. That’s not a nostalgic number. That’s still elite.

Offensively, he chipped in by scoring 11 goals and putting up 29 points over a full 82-game season, his first time hitting that mark since 2018–19. Nothing flashy, nothing forced—just steady, responsible hockey.

And that’s really the story here. He wasn’t asked to be the guy anymore. He was asked to be useful, reliable, and professional. And he was all of it.

What Toews brought to the Jets went beyond statistics.

But the part that probably matters most can’t be measured on a stat sheet. He also became one of those quiet veteran voices in the room—the kind younger players lean on without it being a formal title. Three Stanley Cups’ worth of experience doesn’t disappear, even after time away.

When asked about everything he’s been through, Toews didn’t try to hide his struggles. He noted that he was “very thankful for all of the struggles. … Because honestly, it’s where I’ve learned the most about myself. About hockey, about life and all of those things.”

That’s not a hockey thing. That’s a life thing.

Toews’ comeback didn’t prove anything in a broad sense.

And maybe that’s what makes this comeback different. It’s not about proving anything to the league anymore. It’s about proving something to himself—and maybe, in the process, reminding everyone what a complete player still looks like when the game slows down, and the details matter most.

In Winnipeg, they didn’t just get a player back. They got a story still in motion.