This Week in the NHL: Homecoming week for Marner, Toews
With 32 teams, games every night and countless narratives emerging, the NHL season can make one’s head spin, and it’s easy to miss out on the weekly storylines. Not to worry; every Monday from October to April, I’ll map out the major events, games, plotlines and milestones on tap for the next seven days.
So what’s happening the week of Jan. 19-25?
Jan. 19: Jonathan Toews returns to Chicago
Winnipeg Jets @ Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m. ET
It’s homecoming week, and it gets started Monday night. Toews ranks among the Blackhawks’ all-time legends, having won three Stanley Cups, a Conn Smythe Trophy and a Selke Trophy across 15 seasons and 1,067 games with the franchise. He had never known another NHL team before he signed with his hometown Jets last offseason, ending a two-year hiatus as he battled chronic inflammatory response syndrome. There are homecomings for which we can’t be sure how the crowd will react – but this is not one of them. Toews will undoubtedly get a raucous hero’s welcome when he takes the ice at United Center.
Jan. 21: Alex Killorn’s 1,000th game
Anaheim Ducks @ Colorado Avalanche, 9:00 p.m. ET
Killorn has played in relative obscurity over the past couple seasons since signing with the Ducks, so it feels like his 1,000th game crept up on us. He’s now 36, and his career is winding down, but he’ll always be remembered as an important cog on the Tampa Bay Lightning’s back-to-back Stanley Cup teams in 2019-20 and 2020-21, particularly the latter run when he had 17 points in 19 games.
Jan. 22: Charlie Coyle’s 1,000th game
Dallas Stars @ Columbus Blue Jackets, 7:00 p.m. ET
Coyle has spent the majority of his career as a reliable, rangy middle-six center who can play in many situations. He racked up playoff experience and reached the Stanley Cup Final as a Boston Bruin, but don’t sleep on what he’s done in his first season with Columbus, whose jersey he’ll wear for Game No. 1,000. Coyle has been so good defensively in 2025-26 that he deserves some Selke Trophy consideration.
Jan. 22: Roman Josi’s 1,000th game
Ottawa Senators @ Nashville Predators, 8:00 p.m. ET
It’s fitting that Josi will hit the milestone at home, because it might feel particularly emotional given he overcame a scare with postural tachycardia syndrome before the season. With all due respect to the likes of Shea Weber and Pekka Rinne: Josi is arguably the greatest player in franchise history. He’s won a Norris Trophy and has finished as a finalist three times; he played on Nashville’s 2016-17 Stanley Cup Finalist squad; he’s the Preds’ all-time scoring leader; and he holds the single-season franchise record for points with 92. As one of the best offensive defensemen of his generation, he’ll likely earn a Hall of Fame call someday. Next on his list of accolades: Game No. 1,000.
Jan. 23: Mitch Marner returns to Toronto
Vegas Golden Knights @ Toronto Maple Leafs, 7:00 p.m. ET
Speaking of homecomings for which the reaction is not predictable: this is exhibit A. The Leafs and Golden Knights got a warmup at Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena last Thursday, but that wasn’t the main event. The game the Leaf fan base circled on the calendar the moment the schedule came out: Vegas visiting Toronto on Friday, Jan. 23, marking Marner’s first game in his home city wearing a road uniform. Whatever ovation he receives at Scotiabank Arena, we know it will be a passionate one. Some fans might feel compelled to honor the Leafs’ No. 6 all-time scorer. Others will get their boo on in a major way for a star player who decided he’d had enough of that market and made sure to point a finger at the fans as the primary reason. Considering the few Leaf fans in attendance in Vegas last week booed Marner every time he touched the puck…it might get ugly in Toronto.