The Winnipeg Chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association has named Jonathan Toews the Winnipeg Jets Nominee for the Bill Masterton Trophy.

The 37-year-old Winnipeg-born centre joined his hometown team for the 2025-26 NHL season after missing the two previous years recovering from the effects of long COVID.

Despite being away from the game for that considerable period of time, Toews has managed to play in all 77 of Winnipeg’s games to date and ranks seventh in team scoring with 10-17-27.

Where the former Chicago Blackhawk Captain and three-time Stanley Cup champion has not missed a beat is at the faceoff dot. Toews has won 61.4 per cent of his draws (578-363), which is third best in the NHL among players who have taken 500 or more faceoffs this season.

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There was a tremendous amount of excitement this past summer when the future Hockey Hall of Famer signed a one-year deal with the Jets to return to the NHL after spending his first 15 seasons with Chicago and leading the Hawks to Stanley Cup titles in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

Toews was treated to a hero’s welcome from fans in the Windy City on Jan. 19 when he made his first return to the United Center before parting ways with the Blackhawks at the end of the 2022-23 season. The former Chicago captain received a standing ovation that lasted more than four minutes after a tribute video was shown during the first media timeout.

Toews will now join nominees from the NHL’s 31 other teams and the winner will be determined following a poll of all chapters of the PHWA. The 2025-26 Masterton Award winner will be announced when the NHL holds its annual awards.

Last year’s recipient was former Jet Sean Monohan of the Columbus Blue Jackets, while the most recent Winnipeg nominees include Eric Comrie (2020-21), Josh Morrissey (2021-22), Sam Gagner (2022-23), Laurent Brossoit (2023-24) and Neal Pionk (2024-25).

The Masterton Trophy was first presented by the NHL Writers Association in 1968 to commemorate the late William Masterton, a player for the Minnesota North Stars, who was originally from Winnipeg and exhibited to a high degree the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. Masterton died on Jan. 15, 1968, after sustaining an injury sustained during a hockey game.