Jonathan Toews

Born	April 29, 1988 (1988-04-29) (age 21), Winnipeg, MB, CAN
Height Weight	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 211 lb (96 kg; 15 st 1 lb)
Position	Centre
Shoots	Left
NHL team	Chicago Blackhawks
Ntl. team	Canada
NHL Draft	3rd overall, 2006 Chicago Blackhawks
Pro career	2007 – present

Jonathan Toews (pronounced /ˈteɪves'/ ; born April 29, 1988 in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and team captain for the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Blackhawks with the third overall pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing career

Toews was selected first overall in the 2003 WHL Bantam Draft by the Tri-City Americans,^[1] but chose instead to play college hockey at the University of North Dakota. Prior to joining the North Dakota Fighting Sioux, he played 2004–05 at Shattuck-St. Mary's, a boarding school in Faribault, Minnesota. He scored 110 points in 64 games in his only season with the team.

Toews played two seasons at North Dakota, compiling 85 points (40 goals, 45 assists), a plus-38 rating and a 56.7% faceoff winning percentage in 76 games. He helped the Fighting Sioux reach the NCAA Frozen Four in both 2006 and '07.^[2] Toews' registered 39 points as a freshman and earned Rookie of the Week honors twice.^[3] He helped North Dakota capture the Broadmoor Cup as WCHA champions and also was named West Regional MVP after tallying five points.^[3]

Going into the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, Toews was ranked third overall by NHL Central Scouting^[3] and was chosen third overall by the Chicago Blackhawks.

Toews in 2009.

In 2007–08, he opted out of the final two years of college hockey to debut with the Blackhawks after signing a 3-year, entry level contract on May 16, 2007.^[4] He scored his first NHL goal on his first shot in his first game on October 10 against the San Jose Sharks. He then recorded the second-longest point-scoring streak to start an NHL career, registering a point in each of his first 10 games (5 goals, 5 assists).^[5] On January 1, 2008, Toews sprained his knee in a game against the Los Angeles Kings. Despite missing 16 games from the injury, Toews led all rookies in goal-scoring and finished third in points. Toews finished second in team scoring behind fellow rookie Patrick Kane. Toews and Kane battled all season for the lead in team and rookie scoring before Toews went down to injury. The two were both nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy along with Washington Capitals forward Nicklas Bäckström; teammate Kane was named rookie of the year over Toews.

Following his successful rookie campaign, Toews was named team captain of the Blackhawks on July 18, 2008. At 20 years and 79 days, he became the third youngest team captain in NHL history, behind Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins.^[5] Toews had previously been named an alternate captain in December 2007, during the 2007–08 season.^[6] In the subsequent season, he was voted as a starter, along with teammates Patrick Kane and Brian Campbell, for the 2009 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal.^[7] Shortly thereafter, on February 27, 2009, he recorded his first career NHL hat trick against the Pittsburgh Penguins at home in a 5-4 overtime loss.^{[citation needed]} He finished the 2008–09 season with 69 points in 82 games, helping the Blackhawks to their first post-season appearance since 2002. Toews added 13 points in 17 playoff games as the Blackhawks advanced to the Western Conference Finals, where they were eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings in five games.

Less than a month into the 2009–10 season, Toews was sidelined with concussion-like symptoms after receiving an open-ice hit from defenceman Willie Mitchell in a 3–2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on October 21, 2009. Toews had just received a pass when Mitchell was just leaving the penalty box to catch Toews with his head down. Toews and fellow teammates Duncan Keith and Patrick Kane agreed to contract extensions in early December of 2009. Kane and Toews have agreed to a contract extensions of 5 years making about 6.5 Million each season.^[8][9]

International play

Medal record
Competitor for  Canada
Ice hockey
World Championships
Silver	2008	Halifax/Quebec
Gold	2007	Moscow
World Junior Championships
Gold	2007	Mora/Leksand
Gold	2006	Vancouver
World U-17 Hockey Challenge
Gold	2005	Lethbridge

In 2005, Toews captained Canada West at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge to a gold medal. He scored the game-winning goal in a 3-1 win over Canada Pacific in the championship game.^[10] He finished with 12 points, first in tournament scoring, and was named tournament MVP.^[11]

In his draft year, he competed on Team Canada's under-20 team at the 2006 World Junior Championships as the youngest player on the team.^[12] Toews tallied 2 assists during the tournament, both against Norway in preliminary play,^[3] as Canada defeated Russia in the gold medal game 5-0.

In 2007, he earned a second straight World Junior gold medal. In the semi-final game against the U.S., Toews scored three times in the shootout to advance to the final. With 7 points, Toews led Team Canada in scoring and was named to the Tournament All-Star Team with teammate Carey Price. Shortly after his gold medal win, Toews was honored by his hometown AHL team, the Manitoba Moose, on February 3, 2007, as he was presented with an honorary jersey for his tournament efforts.^{[citation needed]}

That same year, Toews also made his senior international debut at the 2007 World Championships and recorded 7 points in 9 games competing against mostly professional players after coming off just his second year of college hockey. Team Canada earned gold over Finland 4-2 in the championship game. In doing so, he became the first Canadian to win a World Junior championship and a World Championship in the same year.^{[citation needed]} On June 29, 2007, Toews was awarded the Order of the Buffalo Hunt, an award given by the Province of Manitoba in honour of sporting achievements, for his play in the junior and senior world championships.^[13]

After Toews' rookie year in the NHL, he competed in his second World Championships in 2008. As Russia defeated Team Canada in overtime in the gold medal game, it marked the first international competition that Toews had not won gold.

Awards

• World U-17 Hockey Challenge MVP - 2005
• WCHA Rookie of the Week - twice in 2005-06
• NCAA West Regional MVP - 2006
• World Junior All-Star Team - 2007
• Provost of the Hunt, Manitoba Order of the Buffalo Hunt - 2007
• Nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy - 2008
• NHL All-Star Game - 2009 (starter)

Personal life

Toews' younger brother, David Toews, also attended Shattuck-St. Mary's and began his freshman year at the University of North Dakota in 2008–09.^[14] He was drafted by the New York Islanders in the 3rd round, 66th overall, in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

In January of 2007, Toews and former teammate T.J. Oshie received alcohol-related citations for being minors in a Grand Forks tavern.^[15][16] Toews and Oshie pleaded guilty to the charges.^[17] The two were later placed on probation, and ordered to perform community service.^[18]

Career statistics

International statistics

References

External links

• Jonathan Toews's NHL player profile
• Jonathan Toews's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• Jonathan Toews Brick Tournament Minor Hockey Goal Video
• Jonathan Toews Brick Tournament Minor Hockey Assist Video