NHL News: Jonathan Toews back in action after a year hiatus; Mark Giordano scores in return to Calgary; and more
Last December, the Blackhawks announced that Jonathan Toews would be out indefinitely. At the time, all that was revealed was the symptom of chronic fatigue. This summer, he revealed he had been battling with Chronic Immune Response Syndrome.
“What they were calling is was Chronic Immune Response syndrome, where I couldn’t just quite recover,” Toews explained. “My immune system was reacting to everything I did – any kind of stress – it took some time. That was the frustrating part, not really knowing when or how I was going to get over the hump.”
Last night, for the first time in over a year, the Hawks captain played in a game.
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NHL News: Toews back in action
Toews, 33, played in a 4-3 SO loss to the Detroit Red Wings. He picked up a secondary assist in the first period and finished the game with a TOI of 22:48.
“Obviously, I’ve got my work cut out for me, but it’s coming. So just happy to be out there,” he explained. “We’ve got pretty good skates in practices, but I feel better than Day One. I think I feel pretty good about my progress and, you know, just getting in shape, I guess, pretty much.”
The revamped Hawks are much better than last year with the addition of Seth Jones on the blue-line and Marc-Andre Fleury in goal. They are a team to watch in the Central Division.
Mark Giordano scores in Calgary
While it may just be a preseason game, former Flames captain was met with love in Calgary last night. He rewarded them with the game’s first goal just 3 minutes in.
Giordano, 37, snuck in late on the play and went 5-hole for the tally. After the score, fans in Calgary chanted his name.
“It was nice to see him in between the anthems and during the anthems, the fans giving him the ‘Gio’ chants and the quick little Jumbotron presentation,” Milan Lucic said of his old teammate.
After 15 years in the NHL, all with the Flames, Giordano is making the adjustment to play in Seattle. “Surprisingly I felt pretty calm,” he said during an intermission interview. “I think just maybe before the game a little bit of nerves seeing the guys in warmup and stuff like that. But felt pretty calm, feel good, glad I did this in exhibition.”
Seattle won the contest 4-3 in a SO. The Kraken make their way to Calgary for a regular season tilt on December 23.
Other NHL Scores
- Devils 5 vs Capitals 4
- Blue Jackets 5 vs Blues 2
- Maple Leafs 4 vs Senators 0
- Panthers 4 vs Stars 3
- Jets 5 vs Oilers 1
- Coyotes 4 vs Ducks 1