Truth of Jonathan Toews' departure from Blackhawks comes out

It's officially the end of an era in the Windy City that saw a franchise resurrected from the dead, the return of home games actually being broadcast on television, and a trio of unforgettable Stanley Cup runs. 

Jonathan Toews, the longtime captain of the Chicago Blackhawks, played his final game with the franchise on Thursday night at a packed United Center against the Philadelphia Flyers. Toews scored a goal for good measure, and got a proper sendoff from the crowd afterward. 

While Toews' health has cast doubt upon his future playing in the NHL, it doesn't sound as though he's quite ready to call it a career on hockey's biggest stage. And apparently, it wasn't his decision that Thursday night was the last time he plays for the Blackhawks. In fact, it sounds as though that was purely a move made by team management, led by general manager Kyle Davidson. 

Per Mark Lazerus of The Athletic: 

"MacKenzie Entwistle said Jonathan Toews told the guys in Seattle that the Blackhawks wouldn't be re-signing him. Nothing formal, just casual talks with teammates in the meal room."

And according to comments made by Davidson himself, it certainly sounds as though the franchise was ready to move in a new direction without Toews, whether he wanted to or not. 

“I don’t know if resting on sentimentality or the past does us any good in the future,” Davidson said.

Professional sports certainly are a business, and there will be uncomfortable partings that can result in bitterness and hurt feelings. But to Toews' credit, it doesn't sound as though he's sore over the decision - at least not publicly. 

“There’s absolutely no hard feelings,” he said. “I have nothing but love and gratitude for the Blackhawks and Rocky Wirtz and the Blackhawks family — everyone over the years who’s been a part of that. … It’s a business.”