Jonathan Toews calls it a career, retires after 16 NHL seasons

An NHL great is saying goodbye to his playing days.

Winnipeg's Jonathan Toews, who played for his hometown team last season, announced his retirement Friday after 16 seasons.

"It's a privilege to be standing up here to say goodbye to the game of hockey and the NHL. There's a lot of great players out there that don't get this opportunity," Toews, 38, said at a news conference in Winnipeg, inside the sports complex named after him in the neighbourhood where he grew up.

The announcement comes almost one year to the day after the Jets revealed Toews was joining the team following a two-year hiatus from the NHL to deal with symptoms of long COVID and chronic inflammatory response syndrome. 

That announcement was June 20, 2025, but the formal signing didn't happen until July 1, when Toews committed to a one-year contract to be a Jet for the 2025-26 season.

On Friday, Toews thanked the Blackhawks organization, saying how special it was to be with them and that "it all kind of went by in the blink of an eye."

And he thanked the Jets and team co-owner Mark Chipman for bringing the NHL back to the city. 

"I knew what it meant when I was a kid and growing up and being a Winnipegger, but to come back and witness it first-hand by being a Winnipeg Jet, it's amazing," he said.

"Thank you for giving me the opportunity to live out my dream of pulling on that Jets sweater and playing in front of my hometown community."

Chipman said he wouldn't be the least bit offended if Toews decides "to pull a Tom Brady," referring to the NFL quarterback who retired then reversed his decision 40 days later for one last season.

"Jonathan, I know I can say on behalf of all of the hockey fans of this community, how immensely proud you have made us from