Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews will miss the remainder of the regular season, but is expected to be "100 percent" for the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, coach Joel Quenneville said Wednesday.
The Blackhawks have six games remaining and are third in the Central Division with 99 points, three fewer than the second-place Colorado Avalanche, Chicago's likely opponent in the First Round.
"We're not gonna play him for the rest of these six games so he'll be ready to go [for the playoffs]," Quenneville said.
Toews sustained an upper-body injury Sunday when Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik checked him hard into the boards. He is third on the team with 28 goals and 68 points in 76 games.
"I didn't like the hit at that time," Quenneville said. "What could you have done differently? You can look at all the different options … there's probably no great option right at that time with a 2-1 hockey game."
The Blackhawks already are playing without right wing Patrick Kane, who is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season with a leg injury.
"We're gonna be smart and make sure that he's gonna be 100 percent," Quenneville said of Toews. "And he will be 100 percent for the playoffs."
Would Toews play if the playoffs started Thursday?
"Could he play? Knowing Jonny Toews, no chance he'd be out of a game," Quenneville said.