Chicago sports teams salute Jonathan Toews originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews will play his 1,067th and final regular season game for the team on Thursday night, and a group of the city’s professional sports franchises are bidding him a fond farewell.
Toews, drafted No. 3 overall by the Blackhawks in 2006, won three Stanley Cups with the team and was named one of the 100 greatest players in NHL history by the league as part of its centennial celebrations.
With all of that winning, it’s no surprise that teams in the city paid tribute to his legacy ahead of his final game in a Blackhawks uniform.
The Blackhawks famously made the pilgrimage to Wrigley Field several times after winning titles, and Toews got to throw out a first pitch, as the Cubs reminded us:
The Bulls also saluted their fellow United Center tenant, posting a picture of Toews with former point guard Derrick Rose:
The White Sox also had an image of the gold-medal winner throwing out a pitch at Guaranteed Rate Field, as well as a meeting with Jim Thome during Toews’ remarkable rookie season on the West Side:
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Toews and the Blackhawks brought the Stanley Cup to Soldier Field multiple times, including for their 2015 title celebration, and the Bears paid homage to those visits in their tribute to the captain:
Toews has not yet decided whether he will continue his career after leaving the Blackhawks, but the captain ranks among the team’s all-time greats, with 371 goals and 511 assists in his career. He won the Conn Smythe Award as playoff MVP in 2010, the Selke Trophy as the league’s best defender in 2013, and finished in the top-10 in Hart Trophy voting on four occasions.
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