Chicago Blackhawks announced on Tuesday that their captain Jonathan Toews won’t be joining the team for a training camp ahead of the 2020/21 season.
According to the announcement, Toews is currently dealing with an undisclosed illness and will be out indefinitely.
“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,” said Toews in a statement. “I do not have a timetable for when I will rejoin the team.”
This is a tough blow for the Blackhawks, considering they will be without promising center Kirby Dach and forward Alex Nylander to start the season. Dach recently broke his wrist while on international duty with Canada, while Nylander underwent knee surgery earlier this month. Both players are expected to miss four to six months of action.
Blackhawks are undergoing a rebuild at the moment but decided to keep Jonathan Toews in hopes that he can be a mentor to their younger players. Toews spent his entire NHL career in Chicago and played an important part on three Stanley Cup-winning teams in the past decade.
In 943 games in Blackhawks’ jersey, Toews scored 345 goals and dished 470 assists for a total of 815 points. He has a Conn Smythe Trophy from 2010 and was named an All-Star on five occasions.
