Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews announced Tuesday morning that he would be out indefinitely with an undisclosed illness, missing training camp and at least the start of the 2021 NHL season. As of now, there’s no timetable for his return.
The announcement stunned they hockey community. While hockey players are often vague about their injuries, physical injuries, especially those that require players to miss signifiant time, tend to be disclosed. The vague nature of Toews’ statement feels deeply unsettling, but it’s something that could set a good example for hockey players moving forward.
“This offseason, I’ve been experiencing symptoms that have left me feeling drained and lethargic,” Toews said via the Blackhawks. “I am working with doctors so I can better understand my condition. Until I can get my health back to a place where I feel I can perform at an elite level and help my team, I will not be joining the Blackhawks for training camp. I do not have a timetable for when I will rejoin the team.”
Toews has captained the Blackhawks to three Stanley Cup championships and earned himself the Conn Smythe. His dedication, his commitment and his drive can’t be in question, which makes his decision to pull back from hockey for his health all the more meaningful.
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There’s a tendency in sports, and especially the NHL to glorify playing injured as a litmus test of loyalty and masculinity. Toews acknowledging he needs to get his health back before he can hit the ice pushes back against the narrative that anything short of a broken leg requires a player to be on the ice.
“I am extremely disappointed, but it wouldn’t be fair to myself or my teammates to attempt to play in my current condition,” Toews wrote.
We have no idea what’s going on with Toews or his health, and parsing his words for any clue as to what he’s going through leads to all kinds of different directions. The only clear and unfortunate answer is that Toews, who has shown himself to be a leader on and off the ice, is not well, and he’s not well in a way that hockey knows how to fix. That, is pretty scary.
“To Blackhawks fans, I will continue to do whatever I can to get back on the ice and return to play the game I love for the team I love. I will not be making any further comment at this time and ask everyone to please respect my privacy as I focus on my health and recovery,” he said.
Broken bones, concussions, all these things have a timetable and procedures for return. Sure they can take months to heal, but Toews sounds like he’s dealing with something more nebulous and unsettling. There’s a temptation, and a huge pressure among hockey culture, to just “play through the pain.”
For once, we should applaud someone who is pushing back against that destructive narrative, and putting their own well being first.