Kukla's Korner Hockey
Jonathan Toews On The Chicago Blackhawks
by Paul on 07/26/22 at 05:38 PM ET
Comments (16)
from Mark Lazerus of The Athletic,
And now Toews, like Kane, is facing the possibility — no, the very high probability — that this will be his last season in Chicago. And that he might even be shipped out before it’s over.
“When we traded Hags, and then Cat and Kirby, reality really set in that, OK, this is where we’re at, and they’ve got to really focus on the future,” Toews said. “And it’s just unfortunate that it’s come to that. But it is what it is. So much of that stuff has been out of my control for quite some time, and it’s a weird place to be in as a captain. It’s hard to tell, sometimes, what should be your concern and what shouldn’t be, aside from just playing your game. So my head is here, thinking about what’s right in front of me, what the next day or the next game or the next challenge is. These last few years have taught me to be in the moment and cut out the things that I really can’t control, and to just focus my energy on what I can control so I can really enjoy the game from there.”...
“At the end of the day, we’re talking about a five-plus-year process, according to Kyle,” Toews said. “So that part of it doesn’t sound appealing to me at all. I can’t speak for Kaner, but I definitely feel that the amount of turnover our team has gone through every single year these last three or four years, that’s where it gets really, really draining. And exhausting. You have a guy like Alex DeBrincat who was under Kaner’s wing. And I like to think that Kirby and I had that bond in some ways, too. And out they go, out the door. Over and over, we’ve seen that turnover. I’m learning to be more patient, but there’s no doubt that timeline is pretty daunting, and pretty exhausting to think about. So I’m not going to sit here and say what I’m going to do or what the future holds for me, because I really don’t know.”
much more (paid)
Filed in: NHL Teams, Chicago Blackhawks, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Comments
The front office can’t figure out wtf they’re doing year to year, and now it lands on nearly a complete tear down.
Toews may not be the player he once was, but everyone wants to win and compete.
This may be best for the Blackhawks long term, but Toews has every right to be done with it. He has a NMC in this last year of his contract. I think he should stick it out and retire at the end of the year.
Posted by ilovehomers on 07/26/22 at 07:30 PM ET
He seems like a dude who will play until they won’t let him anymore.
Posted by Chet from twitter: thegansen on 07/26/22 at 07:59 PM ET
Sportsnet has more on The Athletic article.
Posted by Paul from Motown Area on 07/26/22 at 08:08 PM ET
I’m not ashamed to say that Toews’ pain and angst gives me great pleasure.
This whiner is almost as bad as Crybaby Crosby. Almost. 
Posted by bigfrog on 07/26/22 at 08:18 PM ET
He talks a lot but doesnt say much. Never seemed captain like publicly at least.
Nevertheless, no team is taking on his contract for his current production. And given the lack of support he will have around him this year, his numbers will be even worse.
Posted by TreKronor on 07/26/22 at 09:57 PM ET
Yeah, he wants outta there. What a foppish organization.
Posted by SYF from impossible and oddly communally possessive sluts on 07/26/22 at 10:48 PM ET
Toews isn’t good enough to go elsewhere given his contract—-unlike Kane. He try to whine his way out of town—but it isn’t going to work.
Even if the ‘hawks retained 50% that still means you are paying 5.25M cap hit for a player that missed the whole ‘20-21 season for an unknown injury. Then followed that up with a 12 goal season (37 pts).
Is 12 goals worth 5.25M—-not in my book.
Is 12 goals worth 10.5M—-not in anyone sane’s book.
Could he in theory get moved at the deadline when his cap hit isn’t so much and have Chicago retain 50%...possibly, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Posted by d ca on 07/27/22 at 01:38 AM ET
I only wish he had more term left on his current deal so he had to stay and suffer through some truly awful years ahead with that almost unmovable cap hit
Posted by SauceBoss on 07/27/22 at 07:58 AM ET
Can somebody explain to me why so much hate towards Towes? What did I miss? Just because he is playing for the Hawks or there is something else there? The fact he missed the season for unknown reasons? But if anybody, Chicago fans then should be mad at him.
He actually said in this interview that “I am not playing so well, so my trade value is low”. Quite self critical even though he said it with a smile.
Posted by VPalmer on 07/27/22 at 08:19 AM ET
Chicago fans then should be mad at him.
He actually said in this interview that “I am not playing so well, so my trade value is low”. Quite self critical even though he said it with a smile.
I’ll speak on behalf of my friends who are Hawks fans. They are disappointed in him. The tipping point was around midway through the 20-21 season when it started to look like he wasn’t coming back. At that point there were rumors as to why he was gone, but it wasn’t clear. The fans eventually thought he quit on the team.
Then that summer he comes out and says he has this disease. Fans thought, okay, you coulda told us that sometime in the past year.
But he comes back and he still logs good minutes (for this disease he says he has), and goes 25 games without a goal. He has a handful of assists. He has a $10.5 mil cap hit.
And that takes us to the root the problem - his, and Kane’s, contracts. Since signing those, the fans were a little unhappy because they felt Toews and Kane put themselves first, not leaving enough money to retain the talent they would need to continue winning. And as we’ve seen over the last handful of years, they have had to trade away players that otherwise could have stayed on the team had they had the cap space.
So, there is disappointment, but also remorse about these contracts and how it played out for Toews. Kane is continuing to put out, he’s actually won over more respect from their fans over the years. But Toews…he just gives the appearance of being sad and no confidence in himself or the franchise. And no one wants to hear their captain talk like that.
Posted by TreKronor on 07/27/22 at 09:08 AM ET
(VPalmer, I was responding to you but forgot to quote that…if that wasn’t clear) 
Posted by TreKronor on 07/27/22 at 09:08 AM ET
Love going back in the KK archives
Check out this article about where the Blackhawks will be in 2023, with Primis absolutely nailing it (so far)
http://kuklaskorner.com/hockey/comments/in-the-year-2023-for-the-chicago-blackhawks
As far as the vitriol for Toews, he has always been seen as a whiner (OTC and BigFrog get major points for consistency )
http://kuklaskorner.com/hockey/comments/do-you-agree-with-steve-yzerman
Posted by ilovehomers on 07/27/22 at 09:12 AM ET
That was clear, thank you TreKronor.
Fans thought, okay, you coulda told us that sometime in the past year.
That actually reminds me of Larkin. He was absent for weeks and I don’t think we even now know what happened there.
Posted by VPalmer on 07/27/22 at 09:13 AM ET
Posted by ilovehomers on 07/27/22 at 09:12 AM ET
Ok, it’s coming back to me now, all that whining
Posted by VPalmer on 07/27/22 at 09:27 AM ET
Well, Toes is a….wait a hot minute….. KK has archives??! (aka, binders full of evidence?!)
Posted by Rumbear from Top O the Hasek, sing along The YzerMan Can!...... on 07/27/22 at 01:05 PM ET
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I’m not ashamed to say that Toews’ pain and angst gives me great pleasure.
Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids, MI on 07/26/22 at 06:18 PM ET