The Toronto Maple Leafs need to acquire a few forwards to change the look of this team's offense before the 2025-26 season. And they might just be able to sign a future Hall of Famer.
Jonathan Toews is making his return to the NHL after last playing in a game over two years ago, in April of 2023. The former Chicago Blackhawks captain that led his legendary team to a couple of Stanley Cups became an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2023 but has not been healthy enough to be back on the ice until now. And now he is set to make his triumphant return.
While it has been long speculated that he might return home to the Winnipeg Jets, or go back to familar roots with the Chicago Blackhawks, or try his luck in a quieter market to lead a new group of young players on some team a few years after their rebuild; what actually might happen is Toews signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Per Nick Alberga via Toews's agent Pat Brisson, Toews is open to joining a whole lot of teams and will not back down from the possibility of signing in Toronto. And it would be some sort of step back into the NHL by signing with the team at the centre of the hockey universe who just want a small taste of glory. And Toews is ready for more.
Back in March, Toews told The Athletic's Mark Lazerus that he wasn't done with hockey.
"I'm not satisfied the way things ended in Chicago. It's not about proving anything. It's just that there's something left in the tank, and I want to explore that. I want to go have fun, have a blast, play with passion.
"I want to be able to step away from the game having said that I've given it my all."
What could we expect from Toews if he signs in Toronto? No one knows. Considering the last sample of ice hockey that have is the 2022-23 season where Toews scored 15 goals and 31 points in 53 games on a disastrous Blackhawks team, he last showed that he can still be a very capable middle-six center. The only question is whether or not that is still in him more than two years later and at 37 years old.
It would either turn out to be pretty good or go the way of other eventual Hall of Famers signing with the Leafs in their twilight years, Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton, who were not able to contribute as much as we all hoped in Toronto.