Toews throws out ceremonial 1st pitch at Cubs game

The Winnipeg Jets brought a familiar face to The Friendly Confines.

Forward Jonathan Toews threw out the first pitch before the Chicago Cubs game on Sunday, getting a strong ovation from fans who remember him lifting the Stanley Cup three times as captain of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Toews — wearing a Ryan Dempster Cubs jersey, a nod to his fellow Canadian who pitched nine of his 16 MLB seasons for the Cubs including during the Blackhawks 2010 title season — nailed the first pitch, and got another cheer from the fans on his way off the mound.

The Jets face off against the Blackhawks on Tuesday at United Center (8:30 p.m. ET; TSN3, CHSN).

Many of Toews’ Jets teammates joined him at the game, including Dylan DeMelo and Mark Scheifele.

"It was a great day overall," DeMelo said. "I think it was our first two-day break in three weeks and it was nice to have a nice, sunny day, go watch the Cubs play and see Toewser throw the first pitch. ... The whole day, just hanging out and going to dinner with the guys, that’s the fun stuff about this League."

"It was really cool," Scheifele said. "Haven’t been to a baseball game in a long time, too, so it was a cool atmosphere, cool to see Toews throw the first pitch. It was a fun time."

Toews played 1,067 career games with the Blackhawks over the span of 15 seasons, from 2007-2023, before he took two years off. He eventually signed with the Jets for this season.

He returned to Chicago for the first time since his free agency back in January, when he received a standing ovation from the crowd at United Center.

-- NHL.com staff writer Tracy Myers contributed to this report