Major illness to prevent Jonathan Toews from being traded

Breaking: Sources say #Blackhawks    captain Jonathan Toews will not be moved prior to the #NHL trade deadline.

I'm told Toews and Chicago made a joint decision as he needs more time to recover from his latest illness. He hasn't played since Jan. 28.

Most importantly for Toews, there does not appear to be any major long-term health concerns and it's possible Toews could return to the lineup in March.

But out of fairness to other teams, Toews felt his body was not cooperating to compete at a high level right now.

First of all, thank you to the fans and all those who have shown concern about my absence. I'm still dealing with the symptoms of Long COVID and Chronic Immune Response Syndrome.

It has been really challenging to play through these symptoms. In the last few weeks, it has reached the point where I had no choice but to step back and concentrate on getting healthy. I am thankful for the patience and support of my teammates, the coaching staff, and the entire Blackhawks organization.