Former UND star Jonathan Toews discusses what kept him away from hockey and plots his return

Jun. 30—Jonathan Toews is back on the ice and plotting his return to the NHL.

Toews, the former UND star and longtime captain of the Chicago Blackhawks, released a video Wednesday morning, discussing for the first time the medical condition that kept him off the ice for the 2020-21 hockey season.

Toews said doctors diagnosed it as Chronic Immune Response Syndrome.

"I think there were a lot of things that just piled up where my body fell apart," Toews said. "What they're calling it was Chronic Immune Response Syndrome, where I just couldn't quite recover and my immune system was reacting to everything that I did. . . any kind of stress, anything that I would do throughout the day, there was always kind of that stress response, so it took some time. That was the frustrating part, just not really knowing when or how we were going to get over the hump. But thankfully, I have a great support team that helped me get through it. I learned a lot about the stress I've put on my body over the years."

Toews, known for keeping his body in peak physical condition through fitness and healthy eating habits, played two years at UND from 2005-07 before signing with the Blackhawks and embarking on a career that will some day put him in the Hall of Fame. He captained the Blackhawks to Stanley Cups in 2010, 2013 and 2015, while winning Olympic gold with Canada in 2010 and 2014.

Through his 14 NHL seasons, all of that success meant a lot of time on the ice. He has played in 943 regular-season games and another 137 playoff games.

His last game came Aug. 18, 2020, in the NHL playoffs in the Edmonton bubble. Toews scored a goal in a series-clinching loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. Toews, who scored 35 goals in 2018-19, averaged a point per game in the 2020 playoffs.

On Jan. 12, just before the start of NHL training camp, Toews announced that he would be out indefinitely as he and his doctors tried to better understand a medical condition that left him "drained and lethargic."

"I wasn't too vocal about the things I went through this year," Toews said in Wednesday's video. "I definitely want to thank the fans, my teammates, the organization. . . I think you realize there's more to life than hockey, but I'm excited to get back to the United Center and play and just go out there and have fun. I think my best is going to come through and I'm excited to get back in front of the fans."

The video showed Toews, 33, skating at the Blackhawks' practice facility, Fifth Third Arena, located near their game home of the United Center.

"It feels great," Toews said. "It's been a long time. I haven't taken this much time off the ice. . . probably ever. . . since I was a kid at least. So, it's definitely nice to be back in Chicago, see some of the guys again, and slowly but surely kind of settle into the life and into the routine again. It's a good feeling right now."

Of the 107 NHL players to come through UND, Toews is one of the most accomplished.

His 815 NHL regular-season point total ranks first among former UND players, slightly ahead of Zach Parise's 810. Toews ranks second in goals (48 behind Parise), second in assists (20 behind James Patrick) and eighth in regular-season games played (behind Patrick, Craig Ludwig, Parise, Travis Zajac, Dave Christian, Murray Barron and Ed Belfour).

"I appreciate all the support," Toews said. "A lot of people were worried. I definitely felt bad to a certain degree that people were that worried, they thought it was really serious, but in the back of my mind, I knew I'd get through it. It was just a matter of time."