Headlines

  • Calgary Flames Name Craig Conroy General Manager
  • Kyle Dubas Will Not Return As Toronto GM
  • Arizona Coyotes Expected To Remain In Tempe For 2023-24
  • Gabriel Landeskog Unlikely To Play Next Season
  • Chicago Blackhawks Win 2023 NHL Draft Lottery
  • New York Rangers Part Ways With Gerard Gallant
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • MLB Trade Rumors
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors

Pro Hockey Rumors

  • Home
  • Teams
    • Atlantic
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Central
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Dallas Stars
      • Minnesota Wild
      • Nashville Predators
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • Metropolitan
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Pacific
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • Vancouver Canucks
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Partners
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Chicago Blackhawks Will Not Trade Jonathan Toews Before Deadline

February 19, 2023 at 2:05 pm CDT | by Ethan Hetu 3 Comments

One of the biggest names many have speculated would be dealt this trade deadline season has just been taken off the board. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports that the Blackhawks and captain Jonathan Toews have “made a joint decision as he needs more time to recover from his latest illness,” and that he “will not be moved prior to the NHL trade deadline.”

Seravalli adds that “there does not appear to be any major long-term health concerns,” and that it’s possible Toews returns to the ice in March. But he noted that “out of fairness to other teams, Toews felt his body was not cooperating to compete at a high level right now,” getting in the way of any possible trade to another club.

Toews confirmed the news in a statement. So as to not attempt to summarize the complex nature of Toews’ health status, here is his statement in full:

First of all, thank you to the fans and all those who have shown concern about my absence. I’m still dealing with the symptoms of Long COVID and Chronic Immune Response Syndrome.

It has been really challenging to play through these symptoms. In the last few weeks, it has reached the point where I had no choice but to step back and concentrate on getting healthy. I am thankful for the patience and support of my teammates, the coaching staff, and the entire Blackhawks organization.

While the lack of depth in this season’s trade market at the center position means that this development has a significant ripple effect across the league, the most important aspect of this announcement is Toews’ own health.

While has described medical issues that have impacted his ability to get on the ice, those same issues can also impact his day-to-day life away from the rink.

Ensuring he is taking all the necessary time away and devoting all the focus he needs to get his personal health in order seems to be Toews’ top priority.

In June 2021, Toews opened up about his health to The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus, detailing the confusion and frustration he dealt with away from the ice. (subscription link)

With this relatively small glimpse into what Toews has been battling with, Toews’ on-ice performance becomes all the more impressive.

Meeting the physical rigors of NHL hockey alone is an achievement for any athlete, and the fact that Toews has been a quietly productive member of a weak Blackhawks squad is extremely impressive given these circumstances.

While Toews’ on-ice future remains unclear, Seravalli did state the possibility that he could return to the ice as soon as in March. But given all that Toews has sacrificed and accomplished for the Blackhawks organization in his run of over 1,000 games for the franchise, it seems very likely that the Blackhawks will afford Toews all the time and freedom he needs to get his body in order, before even considering a return to the lineup.

What this means for the NHL more broadly is significant. The trade market for centers was already precariously thin, and after the trade of Ryan O’Reilly to Toronto Toews was poised to be the highest-quality player on the market. Now, with him on the board, teams in need of help down the middle will likely be hard-pressed to find a quality center other teams would be willing to deal.

With Toews now off the trade market, teammate Max Domi or injured Montreal Canadiens forward Sean Monahan could be the top options available for any team seeking to add a pivot before March 3rd, unless a team manages to pry a less obvious trade candidate away from his current team.

Pictures courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Share 0 Retweet 0 Send via email

Chicago Blackhawks Jonathan Toews

New York Rangers Acquire Tyler Motte
Main
Injury Updates: Landeskog, Makar, Kane
View Comments (3)
newest oldest

Comments

  1. WilfPaiement

    3 months ago

    Toews health has gone off a cliff in recent years, I cant imagine there is a ton of interest from other clubs.

    1
    Reply
  2. bucsfan

    3 months ago

    Jeff Carter is available for a 7th round pick. Ok, I know, I’m asking too much, let’s call it a bag of pucks and some stick tape.

    Reply
  3. johnnynoitall

    3 months ago

    Long Covid. Pretty sad. Probably took the clot shot

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.
Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Calgary Flames Name Craig Conroy General Manager

    Kyle Dubas Will Not Return As Toronto GM

    Arizona Coyotes Expected To Remain In Tempe For 2023-24

    Gabriel Landeskog Unlikely To Play Next Season

    Chicago Blackhawks Win 2023 NHL Draft Lottery

    New York Rangers Part Ways With Gerard Gallant

    Calgary Flames Fire Darryl Sutter

    Calgary Flames, Brad Treliving Agree To Part Ways

    Blue Jackets Fire Brad Larsen

    Washington Capitals, Peter Laviolette Agree To Part Ways

    Recent

    Peter Laviolette Linked To New York Rangers Coaching Vacancy

    Free Agent Focus: Chicago Blackhawks

    IIHF Notes: Hall of Fame, Latvia, Bear

    Daniel Briere To Consider Trading Carter Hart

    Free Agent Focus: Carolina Hurricanes

    Free Agent Focus: Calgary Flames

    Snapshots: Lehner, Hurricanes, Development Camp

    Snapshots: World Championship, Grzelcyk, Ceci

    PHR Mailbag: Sabres, Jets, Bruins, Draft, Flyers, Officiating

    Metropolitan Notes: Penguins, Hurricanes, Rogers

    Rumors By Team

    Rumors By Team

    • Avalanche Rumors
    • Blackhawks Rumors
    • Blue Jackets Rumors
    • Blues Rumors
    • Bruins Rumors
    • Canadiens Rumors
    • Canucks Rumors
    • Capitals Rumors
    • Coyotes Rumors
    • Devils Rumors
    • Ducks Rumors
    • Flames Rumors
    • Flyers Rumors
    • Hurricanes Rumors
    • Islanders Rumors
    • Jets Rumors
    • Kings Rumors
    • Kraken Rumors
    • Lightning Rumors
    • Maple Leafs Rumors
    • Oilers Rumors
    • Panthers Rumors
    • Penguins Rumors
    • Predators Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Red Wings Rumors
    • Sabres Rumors
    • Senators Rumors
    • Sharks Rumors
    • Stars Rumors
    • Wild Rumors

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives

    PHR Info

    • About
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

    scroll to top
    Close

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version