Jonathan Toews plays 22:48 in his first game in over a year

After not playing a game for over a year, Jonathan Toews suited up for the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday night.

Toews missed the entire 2021 with chronic immune response syndrome, an illness that left him frequently feeling “drained and lethargic.” He spoke about the illness for the first time in late July…

Toews’ last appearance came back in August of 2020 when the Blackhawks got dropped in the first round of the NHL’s summer bubble playoffs by the Vegas Golden Knights.

In his first game back on Wednesday, Toews centred a line with Dominik Kubalik and Philipp Kurashev on his wings. He logged 22:48 all told and picked up an assist on a goal by Kurashev in the first period. Toews was also Chicago’s first shooter in the shootout and buried a goal on Red Wings goaltender Calvin Pickard…

Toews has played 943 games over 13 NHL seasons, all with the Blackhawks. If all goes well for him this season, he’ll reach the 1,000 game plateau, just as teammate Patrick Kane did last year.