The Winnipeg Jets are approaching a one-year contract with three-time Stanley Cup winner Jonathan Toews, per Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic. The team later confirmed Toews’ agreement to join the club when he becomes eligible to sign on July 1st.
The details of Toews’ contract with Winnipeg have been revealed by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Free Press. Toews will carry a base salary of $2MM, and receive a $550K bonus for every 20 regular season games that he plays. He will also receive a $500K bonus if the Jets make the playoffs and he appears in 50-or-more games. He’ll additionally receive a $250K bonus for each playoff round Winnipeg wins – assuming he plays in at least 50 percent of games – and a $1MM bonus if Winnipeg wins the Stanley Cup.
This news caps off a saga surrounding Toews’ professional career spanning the last four years. He hasn’t played in a pro game sine April 13, 2023 – though he only managed to play in 53 games of the 2022-23 season collectively. His absences were caused by a diagnosis with Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (CIRS), which can make workouts painful to get through even on a small scale. Toews spoke at lengths about his illness and rehabilitation process, which included a journey to India where he practiced Ayurveda – a traditional healing approach focused on centering spiritual wellness and purging unnecessary toxins.
It was on the heels of his five-week trip to India that Toews first spoke about making a return to the NHL level. Sparks around that fire grew stronger as the months went on, ultimately leading to Toews fully committing to a return in late May. With that commitment came plenty of NHL interest. The Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning were both listed as strong contenders to land Toews’ next contract alongside the Jets. But Toews will ultimately settle on continuing his career with his hometown club, and return to pastures of Winnipeg where he grew up.
The importance of Toews’ decision to move north can’t be understated. He is unequivocally one of the greatest Blackhawks in franchise history, having captained the team to three Cup wins starting at the clean-shaven age of 21. He was the yin to Patrick Kane’s yang for the entirety of the 2010s, serving as the responsible and impactful defensive backstop that facilitated Kane’s all-out offense. Toews reached unprecedented heights in that role. His 883 points in 1,067 games averages out to 29 goals, 39 assists, and 68 points per 82-game season. He tacked onto that Selke Trophy votes in every season between 2009 and 2020, including a Trophy win in 2013 and runner-up bids in 2011 and 2015.
Toews will go down in history as one of the league’s all-time great two-way forwards, in the vein of modern greats like Patrice Bergeron and Aleksander Barkov. But his return to the league stands out as an interesting move. He recorded 15 goals and 31 points in his shortened 2022-23 campaign – good for an 82-game pace of 23 goals and 48 points. Those are stout numbers for a then-34-year-old Toews – but it’s been two years since he’s competed at the same level, and it’s unclear if a 37-year-old Toews will bring the same punch.
Lucky for Winnipeg, they won’t need to rely on an all-star performance from Toews to get to the next level. The squad has appeared in three consecutive postseasons, and seven of the last eight. Many of those runs have come on the back of top-line center Mark Scheifele and partner-in-crime Kyle Connor, who are both already under contract for next season. That means that a rehabilitated Toews will only need to man second-line – or, thanks to Adam Lowry, even third-line – minutes in his return to the NHL scene. A one year deal and minimal role should give Toews the chance to really get his feet under him once again. Should he perform well, the polarizing return could stretch into a multi-year campaign with his childhood-favorite NHL squad.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports, Imagn-Images.
Good for Tazer. Glad to see him coming back and to do it with his hometown team. Can’t wait for the ovation he will get at the United Center when he returns to Chicago
Jonathan Toews signing with Winnipeg was to be expected.
Good for him.
If this is for much more than league minimum plus bonuses, it’ll be a bad contract
As long as it isn’t Edmonton, Best of luck Tazer! Good move staying away from Stan the Sham.
This will be a Jets face plant.
Don’t comment just admit you know nothing lol
Time will tell, Cheveldayoff is a great GM, Toews won’t move the needle at all, The Jets focus should be a solid number two center, And a solid backup goaltender so that Hellebuyck won’t be worn out at playoff time, The Jets should also try and resign Ehlers, The Jets simply don’t need Jonathan Toews. Lol.
Face plant. Wilf, you have finally stumbled upon a topic in your sweet spot.
I’m pretty sure they know that they’re not getting 2015 Johnny Toews here. But if he can play 10-15 minutes a night and they use him in the right spots he can contribute and be a leader. If you’re expecting more than that you aren’t very smart. Plus you’re getting one of the best Face Off men of all time.
Bobby Hull redo but I’m thinking drastic different results, but I wish him and the Jets the best in making dreams come true.
Toews base salary, 2 million, With incentives 5 million, YIKES! I’d be finding a way to acquire a number two center, And resigning Ehlers.
Unfortunate that Anze Kopitar continues to be so criminally underrated, as he’s better than every ‘modern great’ mentioned in this article.
Except number of cups won.. :P
Not sure he will be better than Barkov when its all said and done, but he is definitely overlooked too often.
Why do you keep underrating him?
I thought it was between the Jets and Ducks for his services. Be weird seeing him play against the Hawks, but good they didn’t try to get him back.
I would not be shocked if he gets 50-60 pts this year.
You would be the only one.
How is this not tampering?
He’s been ufa for over 2 years. It’s not like say Marner, who is still technically under contract til July 1st.
How is it tampering?
Interesting reading all the comments from the “experts.” Truth is we don’t know how Johnny will do, but as a long time Hawks fan, I’d love to see him have a great season. We don’t win a single cup w/o him. He made so many great passes, here’s one of them –
link to youtube.com
The pass to Bickel for the tying goal, game 6, 2013
$2M+incentives?!? Yikes! I wish him well.
Can’t wait for his tribute on his return to the United Center, and for a playoff run
Wait, are they signing him to be their 2C or 4C?
One of those is hope, the other is a good idea.