Toews-53

It was a welcomed sight at Fifth Third Arena on Thursday as Jonathan Toews, Calvin de Haan and Connor Murphy returned to practice for the Blackhawks.

Toews left Monday's practice early and was not on the ice on Tuesday, deemed "unfit to participate" by head coach Jeremy Colliton. de Haan has been dealing with a family emergency, missing a full week of camp before returning to the ice apart from the group on Tuesday. Both were full participants in the practice and scrimmage portions of Thursday's session.

RETURN TO PLAY

Murphy, who had not participated in a full team practice since last Wednesday, began skating on his own Tuesday and briefly joined the Blackhawks for practice but left the ice before the scrimmage. The team is hopeful he can make a full return to team activities soon.

"Very positive," Colliton said of the trio's progress. "Of course all those guys are a big part of our group and we need them. We'll keep getting them ready the best we can and still have some time to get up to speed. I thought it was a good skate today, building on the last one we had and just keep working."

Toews on power play, Dach

"It really came down to maintenance. Nothing serious," Toews said Thursday of his absence. "Felt pretty good out there today and getting back to that place where you can take steps forward every day instead of having to take any steps back and do any damage. Felt pretty good, so it worked out."

The only player who remains out is Corey Crawford, who Colliton did not have an update on following Thursday's session. Earlier in the week, Senior Vice President/General Manager Stan Bowman said **REPLAY**: Training Camp Scrimmage - July 23 with the team to Edmonton on Sunday.