WAXING POETIC IN THE PRAIRIES
Toews reflects on better days during Blackhawks’ Western Canada road trip
Who knows for certain whether the Chicago Blackhawks’ trip through Western Canada this week could be part of Jonathan Toews’ farewell tour. He’s going to savor it just the same.
The Hawks’ stop in Calgary on Tuesday was particularly significant to Toews. The Flames were his first playoff opponent, and he registered his first postseason point in Game 1 of their first-round series on April 16, 2009, at the United Center.
Toews had the primary assist on Cam Barker’s goal, the Hawks’ first score of the series. They went on to win the game and the series.
“You win one game, you’re like, ‘Why can’t you win 15 more?’ ” Toews said before Tuesday night’s 4-3 victory against the Flames at the Saddledome. “You get so high and then you lose the next one and then that feeling creeps in.
“It’s like, well, maybe better luck next year, so you just get on that roller coaster and it’s so emotional and the city that you’re in, you can feel the energy in the building. It was an incredible feeling to play at home, but to play on the road, especially in a building like this, was intimidating. But it was part of the fun, too, to come in and be the spoilers.”
The current Flames entered Tuesday’s game two points behind the Winnipeg Jets for the second Western Conference wildcard spot, so they couldn’t afford a hiccup like getting upset by a last-place team.
“As far as being the spoilers, that’s good enough motivation right there,” Toews said.
And spoil they did. The Hawks swept the three-game season series with the win — and put a huge dent in the Flames’ playoff aspirations.
Toews assisted on the first of Andreas Athanasiou’s two goals, Jujhar Khaira added a goal and Austin Wagner recorded his first goal and point as a Hawk. Toews played 13½ minutes and found himself on
the winning side despite one of his toughest nights of the season on the dot (41.2%).
That should be a big jolt for Toews, for whom motivation has been the central question as the season winds down.
Would he have the motivation to play again after a two-month layoff to recover from lingering health problems? He has hinted at hanging up his skates, but will that motivation to keep playing creep back in?
Thinking on better days earlier in his career, Toews said: “There’s definitely moments when it’s hard to feel that (same passion) and (it) feels hard to remember what it feels like to really enjoy the game and playing with that passion, but you stay with it.
“Above all else — especially these last few months being away from the team — it always gives you perspective to look back on things and notice what maybe you take for granted and things that you miss when you’re not playing. I’d say that passion is definitely still there and always will be there. It’s finding that every single day and finding that feeling of being able to be grateful for the ability to show up and be a part of your team every single day. It’s the simple things like that that matter most.”
“He’s a champion,” coach Luke Richardson said. “He’s driven.”
There’s no tangible reason for Richardson to play Toews, particularly having him center the top line with Lukas Reichel and Athanasiou, but the Hawks are going to squeeze what they can out of Toews while they still have him.
On Saturday against the New Jersey Devils, Toews showed coaches how much they missed his contributions in the faceoff circle, on the penalty kill and generating offensive zone time.
“(We’ll) just keep tabs on Tazer, make sure he’s feeling OK,” Richardson said. “We could always rotate someone in there if he needs a break every once in a while, if I’m overusing him on the faceoffs.”
Earlier this month, Toews said “the grind” of dealing with energy-sapping Chronic Immune Response Syndrome and long COVID19 made gearing up for and recovering from each game a struggle. Those same conditions also cost him the entire 2020-21 season.
Speculation has increased that he might retire after the season, which also marks the end of his contract with the Hawks.
“The way things have gone these last few years, it’s never your plan,” Toews said. “It’s never how you prepare, it’s never how you draw it up and hope things would go on the ice.
“Not really going to look back on things and wish they were different. (I’m) thankful for everything that I’ve been able to experience in my career. At this point I’m not looking that far ahead to think about that right now.”
The Hawks still see the intangibles Toews brings to the team, even if it’s for the short term.
“It’s great for them to see a guy, no matter what he’s accomplished, he’s still out there working on his game every day in practice and the drive that he has in the game,” Richardson said.
And if nothing else, Toews gets at least one more crack Thursday at a former playoff rival, the Vancouver Canucks.
After dousing the Flames in 2009, the Hawks beat the Canucks before losing to the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference finals.
The Hawks also faced the Canucks the next two seasons, including the sting of a first-round knockout in overtime of Game 7 in Vancouver in 2011.
Toews scored the Hawks’ lone goal in that game.
“A really tough series against Vancouver,” Toews said. “Pretty memorable ones. Some hatred that lasted for years there.”