According to a team announcement, Winnipeg Jets forward Jonathan Toews is retiring from professional hockey. As first reported by TSN’s Darren Dreger, the veteran center was expected to officially call an end to his illustrious professional hockey career.
After stepping away from the game for two full seasons to focus on his health and manage chronic immune response syndrome, in the 2025-26 season, the 38-year-old returned to the ice with his hometown Winnipeg Jets.
“I knew what it meant when I was a kid and growing up and being a Winnipegger all these years but to come back and witness it first hand, being a Winnipeg Jet, it’s amazing,” Toews said, per a Jets press release.
“… And thank you for giving me the opportunity to live out my dream of pulling on that Jets sweater and playing in front of my hometown community, my family, my friends, all the people who supported me through the years. It meant a lot to them, and it means a lot to me.”
Defying expectations regarding his physical stamina after his time off, Toews played a full 82 game season for the Jets, scoring 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points, all while logging a minus-20 rating on a lackluster season overall for the club, with the Jets finishing with a 35-35-12 record for 82 points and seventh in the Central Division.
Toews retires as one of the most respected, defensive-minded leaders of his generation. His legendary resume was built in his time with the Chicago Blackhawks, during which his 15 seasons as the captain of the Original Six franchise, he led a modern dynasty, winning three Stanley Cup championships in 2010, 2013, and 2015, earning the 2010 Conn Smythe trophy. He was also named to the NHL’s 100th Anniversary Team, and won the 2007-08 Art Ross trophy, the 2012-13 Selke Trophy, and the 2014-15 Mark Messier award.
Toews is estimated to have earned over $120M across his time as an NHLer. His entry-level contract, signed back in 2007 at age 19, paid him $8.4M in total value. After three 50-plus point seasons, Chicago inked him on a five-year, $31.5M ($6.3M) contract extension through the 2014-15 campaign. After the dynasty’s peak years, capping off the third Stanley Cup victory, Chicago locked up Toews that summer on an eight-year, $84M ($10.5M AAV) contract that would take him from age 26 to age 35 in 2023 with a full no-movement clause.
Additionally, Toews is a two-time gold medalist with Canada at the Winter Olympic Games, being named the best forward at the tournament after scoring the most assists (7) and the best rating (+9) in 2010, as well as scoring the clinching goal in 2014. Previously, before he entered the NHL, he was a WCHA conference champion with North Dakota in 2005-06, as well as a two-time World Junior Gold Medalist, scoring the championship-winning goal, making the tournament all-star team, and becoming a Top 3 player on Canada behind a 63% faceoff%, notably in 2006-07.
After being selected third overall by the Blackhawks in the 2006 NHL Draft out of North Dakota, Toews closed his career with 383 goals, 529 assists, and 912 total points across 1,149 regular-season games, while maintaining a stellar plus-128 rating over his 16 active NHL seasons.