Captain Serious Returns

On June 20th, 2025, after most fans thought he was retired, three-time Stanley Cup winner Jonathan Toews announced he would be playing in Winnipeg for the 2025-2026 season. 

Jonathan Toews had missed the past two seasons due to chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS), stemming from long COVID, which caused him to miss the 2020-2021 season as well. It’s been a long journey for Toews to return to the NHL, leading many fans to speculate if he could still play at the NHL level. Toews’s journey was lengthy and difficult for the former Blackhawk. He tried many methods of healing, including both eastern and western practices, over the five-year journey. A big part of Toews’s treatment involved an Ayurvedic detox in India lasting 5 weeks. The detox is called Panchakarma. This practice, which has been used for more than 5,000 years, involved rituals designed to cleanse the body of toxins and reset the mind and body. For Toews, the most difficult part of Panchakarma was the forced vomiting, which he said was mentally challenging, but overall, left him feeling better over time. This process helped Toews heal his mind-to-body connection, which he believed was stopping his body from recovering from CIRS.

Over the summer, Toews signed a one-year, $2 million contract with his hometown Winnipeg Jets. The Jets seemed happy to add Toews to their roster, especially after yet another year of playoff struggles. “We’re excited to add a proven winner like Johnathan Toews to the Winnipeg Jets,” said Kevin Cheveldayoff, the Jets’ GM. “His talent, drive, and experience will be a great complement to our club.” In 25 games, Toews has scored 3 goals and 6 assists. Some may say he needs to be producing more offense, but for someone who didn’t play in the last 2 seasons and someone who is on a $2 million contract, I think Toews is doing fine. Though his point production may be lacking a little bit, his main contribution to his team is his leadership. Toews was captain for the Blackhawks during all three of their cup wins, leading the team in all of them with an amazing two-way game, and even winning the Mark Messier leadership award in the 2014-2015 season. 

Toews’s journey back to the NHL is a perfect example of how determination and discipline can make the seemingly insurmountable possible. Going from three Stanley Cups, a Selke Trophy, a Conn Smythe Trophy, and a Mark Messier leadership award to not being able to play a single game must have driven the veteran player mad, but through determination, persistence, and a clear goal, Toews was able to make it back to the show. Though the question still stands, will he be enough to stop the Jets’ playoff struggles?